establishment of a Jewish state. 21st century Emigration According to the Latin American Jewish Congress, Venezuela's Jewish community had an estimated 22,000 people when Chávez took office in 1999. In the early 2000s, emigration of Venezuelan Jews to Israel grew steadily. The Algemeiner Journal stated that this emigration from Venezuela occurred due to "the country’s economic crisis ... as well as the anti-Semitic rhetoric that has marked the left-wing regime’s support for Iran, Syria, and Palestinian Islamist organizations like Hamas" and that "first Chavez and now Maduro have found political uses for anti-Jewish rhetoric". By 2007, amid concerns of rising allegations of antisemitism, emigration saw Venezuela's 20,000 Jewish population drop by 20% to 45%. For instance The Latin American Jewish Congress estimated that in 2007, only between 12,000 and 13,000 Jews still resided in Venezuela. By November 2010, more than 50% of Jewish Venezuelans had left the country since Chavez came to power, with some of those remaining behind complaining of "official antisemitism". By early 2013, only 9,000 Jews lived in Venezuela and in early 2015, it was reported that under 7,000 lived in the country. Among destinations for the 15–16,000 Jews leaving Venezuela, the prime destination was The United States, particularly Miami. Others went to Israel, as well as to Panama, Colombia, Mexico, Costa Rica, and Guatemala. With the Venezuelan economic crisis of the 2010s, Jewish emigration rapidly increased. This time they primarily moved to Israel, as the devaluation of their property and other assets effectively closed off other possibilities such as the United States and Panama. Antisemitism Antisemitism has occurred periodically throughout the history of Venezuela, including instances of anti-Jewish rioting in the 19th century and immigration restrictions in the early 20th, leading to a difficult assimilation for Jews in the country. Since Hugo Chávez took power in 1999, there have been frequent accusations of antisemitism directed at the government. Members of the World Jewish Congress and Simon Wiesenthal Center have portrayed comments from Chávez as antisemitic, including comparing other politicians to Hitler and the use of the phrase wandering Jews in reference to opposition leaders. The Venezuelan Confederation of Israelite Associations also raised concerns that Chavez's rhetoric, which had "once clearly differentiated criticism of Israel from that of the Venezuelan Jewish community," had merged his anti-Zionist views with anti-Semitic ones beginning in 2004, while The Jewish Telegraphic Agency stated that Chavez's criticism of Israeli military actions during