British Prime Minister Boris Johnson on Sunday wished the Jewish community a happy New Year in a video greeting in honor of Rosh Hashanah.

“I want to wish everyone celebrating Rosh Hashanah a very happy and sweet New Year. I know this is an incredibly important time for Jewish communities here in the UK – a time of reflection, remembrance and renewal. It’s a chance to look back on the deeds of the past year, and to look forward to the opportunities in the next,” he said.

“But it is also a time when all of us should remember and reflect on the fantastic and enormously varied contribution you make to our country,” continued Johnson.

“A Prime Minister, I will always proudly champion this incredible contribution – and equally, I will always be there to defend you against the shameful anti-Semitism that we are increasingly seeing and which is such a terrible blight on our country,” he vowed.

“That’s why as families join together in celebration and reflection, I want to say thank you for all that you do and assure you of my pledge always to stand by our Jewish friends. I wish you all Shana Tova – and may you all be sealed in the Book of Life for a happy and health year ahead,” concluded the British Prime Minister.

On Friday, British Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab published a special message for Rosh Hashanah in which he stressed the UK’s commitment to the security of its Jewish residents.

“I would like to reassure the Jewish community in the UK and worldwide: the UK is committed to your safety and wellbeing, and stands alongside you in the fight against racism and intolerance,” he stressed.

According to a report published last month, a record number of nearly 900 anti-Semitic incidents have been recorded in the United Kingdom for the first six months of 2019.

The Community Security Trust (CST) January-June 2019 Antisemitic Incidents Report found that the 892 incidents reported in the first half of 2019 is the highest number recorded in that six-month period and is a 10 percent increase from the 810 incidents recorded during the same period in 2018.

CST has recorded anti-Semitic incidents since 1984. In February, it released its 2018 report which found that the number of anti-Semitic incidents recorded in the United Kingdom rose to 1,652 in 2018, marking a new record for the third straight year.

In the first half of 2017, the Jewish community of the United Kingdom recorded 767 anti-Semitic attacks. CST that year decided to publish a six-month report, in addition to its annual report, because of the unusual volume of incidents.

In 2016, CST found that the number of anti-Semitic incidents in Britain rose by more than a third compared to 2015.

(Arutz Sheva’s North American desk is keeping you updated until the start of Rosh Hashanah in New York. The time posted automatically on all Arutz Sheva articles, however, is Israeli time.)