Mayor Bill de Blasio has blamed 'hatred from Washington' for the Hanukkah party stabbings in upstate New York after a spate of anti-Semitic hate crimes across his city.

Grafton E Thomas, 37, of Greenwood Lake, pleaded not guilty after he was arraigned on five counts of attempted murder and one count of burglary in Ramapo Town Court late Sunday morning. His bail was set at $5million.

He is accused of stabbing five people in a rabbi's home in Monsey during a Hanukkah celebration in on Saturday night.

The attack came days after New York City Mayor de Blasio was forced to beef-up police forces in Jewish communities reeling from a spate of recent attacks believed to be motivated by antisemitism.

But the mayor told Fox News Sunday 'an atmosphere of hate' that has been 'developing in this country over the last few years' is to blame for the rise in assaults. He added: 'A lot of it is emanating from Washington and it's having an effect on all of us.'

Insisting he was 'not just blaming' Donald Trump, de Blasio added: 'We need a different tone, starting in Washington that encourage this country to actually find some unity and some common ground.'

Around New York city, police received at least seven reports in the week preceding Saturday night's attack of incidents possibly propelled by anti-Jewish bias.

Mayor Bill de Blasio, pictured, has blamed 'hatred from Washington' for the Hanukkah party stabbings in upstate New York after spate of anti-Semitic hate crimes across his city

Grafton, 37, pleaded not guilty to five counts of attempted murder and one count of burglary at an arraignment in Ramapo Town Court late Sunday morning. He is pictured leaving the court

When probed on what he was going to do about the spate of attacks, de Blasio admitted: 'We are in a crisis right now.

'What we're seeing is a growth of antisemitism in this country that is profoundly dangerous. It is happening in Europe as well.'

He also defended the release of defendants as part of bail reform in the city, insisting: 'We have a problem. We're not going to jail our way out of the problem.

'We have a huge NYPD presence. This hate is dangerous.'

The mayor had earlier tweeted: 'Horrific. So many Jewish families in our city have close ties to Monsey. We cannot overstate the fear people are feeling right now.

'I've spoken to longtime friends who, for the first time in their lives, are fearful to show outward signs of their Jewish faith.

'We will NOT allow this to become the new normal. We'll use every tool we have to stop these attacks once and for all.

'The NYPD has deployed a visible and growing presence around Jewish houses of worship on the streets in communities like Williamsburg, Crown Heights and Boro Park.'

New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio lights the first candle of the Menorah on the 8th night of Chanukah at Grand Army Plaza in Brooklyn, New York, on Sunday

Governor Andrew Cuomo along with police, elected officials and community leaders, speaks Sunday at Ramapo Town Hall about Saturday night's stabbings at a rabbi's home in Monsey

New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio tweeted following the attack

President Donald Trump tweeted about the attack on Sunday afternoon

The New York area has seen a frightening uptick of anti-Semitic incidents in recent days. Around the city, police have gotten at least seven reports this week of incidents possibly propelled by anti-Jewish bias.

Besides making officers more visible in Borough Park, Crown Heights and Williamsburg, police will boost visits to houses of worship and some other places, the mayor had earlier tweeted.

'Anti-Semitism is an attack on the values of our city - and we will confront it head-on,' de Blasio, the Democrat, wrote.

At around 12:40am on Friday, a Brooklyn woman screamed 'F*** you, Jews!' and then slapped three other women in the face and head after encountering them on a Crown Heights corner, police said.

Grafton E Thomas was arrested for allegedly stabbing five people inside a rabbi's home during a Hannukah celebration on Saturday night in Monsey, New York. He is pictured in his mugshot

The victims, who range in age from 22 to 31, suffered minor pain, police said.

Tiffany Harris, 30, was arrested on a hate-crime harassment charge.

Also on Friday morning, an unidentified man wearing a hoodie walked into the headquarters of the ultra-Orthodox Lubavitch movement on Eastern Parkway in Crown Heights and stated he was going to shoot up the place, according to WABC-TV.

The man then walked away, in the direction of the Utica Avenue subway station.

The Lubavitch movement is one of the largest sects of Hasidic Judiasm. Also known as Chabad, it has made Brooklyn the center of its activities since the leaders of the movement were forced to flee Europe at the start of the Second World War.

At around 3.20pm on Thursday, a Brooklyn woman walking out of a Dunkin' Donuts with her three-year-old son in Gravesend was attacked by a homeless woman who hit her in the head with her bag, according to police.

'You f***ing Jew! Your end is coming!' the suspect, Ayana Logan, 42, is alleged to have said to the victim.

The victim immediately dialed 911.

A nearby Good Samaritan who witnessed the incident followed the attacker, leading to her arrest, police told WNBC-TV.

Logan has been charged with assault as a hate crime, acting in a manner injurious to a child under the age of 17, criminal possession of a weapon, and harassment.

David Anderson, left, and Francine Graham, right, were killed by cops after fatally shooting a police detective and three civilians on December 10, in an attack that investigators say was motivated by anti-police and anti-Semitic hatred

Jersey City police at the scene the day after an hours-long gun battle with two assailants around a kosher market in Jersey City earlier this month

On Wednesday morning, a Jewish man wearing a skullcap while walking in the Borough Park section of Brooklyn was punched in an unprovoked attack near 13th Avenue and 48th Street at around 1am, according to WPIX-TV.

No arrests were made in the attack.

On Tuesday, two separate suspected anti-Semitic incidents took place in the Crown Heights area of Brooklyn.

Steven Jorge was charged with hate-crime assault after police said he made an anti-Semitic remark and attacked a man in midtown Manhattan

A 25-year-old man was accosted by several people on Kingston Avenue who made anti-Semitic statements.

'F*** you, Jew!' one of the people yelled in his direction.

The victim was then doused with a Slurpee drink.

At around 5pm, a 56-year-old Jewish man walking down Union Street in Crown Heights was punched in the back of the head by one person who appeared to be part of a group.

Others are seen in the area taking out their cell phones and recording the incident. Surveillance video also shows them laughing and cheering as the attack took place.

On Monday, a Miami man was charged with hate-crime assault after police said he made an anti-Semitic remark and attacked a man in midtown Manhattan.

The 65-year-old victim was punched and kicked, suffering cuts, police said.

He had been wearing a yarmulke, according to former state Assemblyman Dov Hikind, who has founded a group dedicated to combating anti-Semitism.

Steven Jorge, 28, is being held without bail, and a judge ordered a psychiatric exam for him, court records show.

TIMELINE OF ATTACKS ON JEWS IN NEW YORK Friday, 7am - Man in hoodie threatens to shoot up Lubavitch headquarters in Crown Heights, Brooklyn Friday, 12:40am - Tiffany Harris, 30, is arrested for allegedly slapping three other women in the face and head on a Crown Heights corner Thursday, 3:20pm - Homeless woman, 42, yells anti-Semitic slur and then strikes a Jewish woman in the head with her bag in front of her three-year-old son Wednesday, 1am - A Jewish man wearing a skullcap while walking in the Borough Park section of Brooklyn was punched in an unprovoked attack Tuesday - A 25-year-old Jewish man had a drink thrown at him by a group shouting anti-Semitic slurs Tuesday, 5pm - A Jewish man, 56, was punched in the head by one person as others filmed the incident and laughed Monday - A Miami man was arrested for making an anti-Semitic remark and attacking a man in midtown Manhattan Advertisement

A message was left Friday for Jorge's lawyer.

Governor Andrew Cuomo told a state hate crimes task force to help police investigate the attack, calling it 'a horrific and cowardly act of anti-Semitism'.

'It's even more despicable that it occurred over the holidays,' the Democratic governor said in a statement Wednesday. Hanukkah began on Sunday.

The New York Police Department's Hate Crime Task Force is also investigating three other episodes that may have been motivated by anti-Semitism:

A man reported that a group of teenagers converged on his six-year-old son and another boy, 7, and hit them from behind in a Williamsburg apartment building lobby Monday night.

The attackers fled.

On December 10, six people died, including two gunmen, a police officer, and three bystanders inside a kosher supermarket in Jersey City.

The four-hour gun battle at the Jewish JC Kosher Supermarket erupted after the pair shot the police officer at a nearby cemetery and then fled in a white van.

It ended after police crashed an armored vehicle through the wall of the market.

It was later learned that the two gunmen were members of the Black Hebrew Israelites movement, a fringe group known for its anti-Semitic strain of street preaching.

'It seems like it's open season on Jews in New York City,' said New York City Councilmember Chaim Deutsch.