Italy will appoint a coordinator in the fight against anti-Semitism, foreign minister Angelino Alfano stated on Monday calling the phenomenon "a virus".
"I have already written to prime minister Paolo Gentiloni. The importance of such a role was underlined by Pope Francis at an audience this morning," Alfano said.
"We can't claim that we can change the world, but we want to draw attention to the virus of anti-Semitism," Alfano said.
Alfano was speaking at the 'Conference on the Responsibility of States, Institutions and Individuals in the Fight against Anti-Semitism in the OSCE Area' taking place at Rome's foreign ministry.
"There are too many dangerous signs of a new wave of racism and anti-Semitism: we must fight the re-emergence of these phenomena which threaten our security," Alfano underlined.
The minister said he hoped that countries chairing the Organisation for Security Cooperation in Europe after Italy would continue to hold the January conference.
OSCE is a group of 57 states from Europe, Central Asia and North America which is devoted to defusing conflicts and to promoting civil rights.
