Almost half a year after removing a group of ultra-Orthodox Jews from their connecting flight to Budapest, the German airline Lufthansa is paying the affected passengers. 

The discriminatory decision occurred after two of the passengers refused to wear a mask on the flight. In response, an airline agent barred an entire group of similarly dressed passengers from boarding the plane. 

Video that circulated online showed a Lufthansa supervisor blaming "Jews coming from JFK" and referencing "Jewish people who were the mess." Lufthansa apologized publicly once the video drew attention online. 

Now, months later, the company is sending each affected passenger a $17,400 check as part of a settlement, according to DansDeals.com, the website that first broke the story.

Uproar over the incident led Lufthansa to create a senior management position to fight antisemitism and discrimination. Later, the company also agreed to institute a training program to teach staff to recognize and combat antisemitism. 

For many New York Jews, the incident seemed one more in a rising tide of antisemitic occurrences. Last year saw a record high of antisemitic incidents, a dramatic 34% increase than in 2020, according to the United States-based Anti-Defamation League. Most of those recorded incidents targeted New York-based Jews. 

Antisemitic incidents have also increased in Europe over the last few years, according to Human Rights Watch. The Lufthansa incident demonstrates that antisemitism is an international problem, which requires more than just apologies. 

This article originally appeared on ALL ISRAEL NEWS and is reposted with permission.