Report of Anti-Semitic Incidents - May-97

May, 1997

This month there was once again an increase in the number of attacks and violent incidents against Jewish installations - most of them were directed against synagogues, especially in London (but also in France and Sweden), some against schools, and others which included desecrations of cemeteries and memorial sites. It appears that at least in some of the cases, the timing was connected with Holocaust Day which fell at the beginning of the month.

There was also a rise in the number of reports of threats received at Jewish installations in Europe (Britain, France, Sweden), among others, via e-mail, and in Australia, Brazil and Mexico.

Instances of anti-Semitic type propaganda continued to appear also on the street in various places throughout the world. This was in addition to manifestations of propaganda in overt publications and over the Internet.

In the sphere of struggle, mention should be made of the efforts of the Jewish community in Italy against anti-Semitism of a religious nature, a complaint of the Committee for the Struggle Against Anti-Semitism in Sweden to the authorities against Ahmed Rahmi who disseminates blatant anti-Semitic and anti-Israel propaganda in Sweden, and the more stringent legislation against anti-Semitism and racism in Brazil.

Attacks and Incidents

Britain - The Willesden and Brondesbury Synagogue in northwest London was broken into and the inside of the synagogue was destroyed. The main prayer hall was set on fire and the fire was put out by fire extinguishers that were scattered afterwards all over the synagogue. Fire extinguisher foam was scrawled all over the ark. Prayer shawls and prayer books were strewn all over the floor in the main hall. It is assessed that the incident was vandalistic and not anti-Semitic but it is nevertheless severe. The police arrested a number of youths suspected of the vandalism.

There was an attempted break-in at the Beit Malka Girls School in London. The front gate lock was forcibly broken and the emergency exit door was open. The building's power supply was cut off. Nothing was found when the building was searched.

A number of incidents occurred this month at the Ruislip and District Synagogue in Middlesex:

a. On 4 May, 1997, the synagogue bathroom window was broken into.

b. On 6 May, 1997, one of the synagogue rooms was set on fire and on one of the doors was written, 'C-18, Hitler, Jews Out, We'll blow up the place'. More abusive slogans and signs of attempts to break in were found on the premises.

c. On 12 May, 1997, abusive slogans were drawn on the synagogue walls. They included a large swastika and the slogans 'Jews will die' and 'Jews Out'.

d. On 16 May, 1997, the synagogue was set on fire once again.

Anti-Semitic defacement and swastikas also appeared on other public buildings in the same area, some of them concerning racism and hatred of foreigners.

The Birmingham Hebrew Congregation Singers Hill Synagogue was broken into in Birmingham. The trespasser was caught by the police after he entered the boiler room and was locked in by the synagogue guard.

Two incidents connected with the Stamford Hill Synagogue in London occurred this month:

a. The synagogue rabbi was attacked by four youths while leaving his house. They spilled inflammable material on his beard and burnt it.

b. A few days later the same youths appeared near the synagogue and threw stones at the worshippers who were coming out of the prayer service and at yeshiva students.

Two Jewish men (one a rabbi) were attacked by three Arab youths, The young men spit on them and cursed them in Arabic.

A group of Hassidim leaving the cemetery in the Edmonton district in London were accosted with abusive language and the Fascist salute by a group of men.

Scotland - The glass door entrance to the Giffnock and Newlands Synagogue in Glasgow was smashed by a stone.

France - In the city of Villeurbanne near Lyon a Molotov cocktail was thrown at a synagogue on the Rue des Muriers. No one was hurt and there was only slight property damage. It is assessed that the incident was connected with Le Pen's visit in the area.

Sweden - In the Stockholm southern cemetery there were two attempts to break into the tool shed. The alarm system was damaged. The background of the incident is unclear.

A number of incidents occurred this month in Malmo:

a. A small swastika was drawn on the synagogue window and another synagogue window was smashed.

b. Swastikas were drawn on the community building.

c. Unknown persons damaged flowers and greenery in the Jewish cemetery.

The Netherlands - On Holocaust day swastikas and the letters S.S. and KKK were drawn on the memorial plaque for victims from the Dutch Resistance in the city of Vught. The site also preserves the transit camp through which some of the Dutch Jews were transported on their way to the death camps in World War II. The site was desecrated two years ago and was rebuilt last year.

On Holocaust Day (5 May, 1997) in the streets of Scheveningen near the Hague, swastikas and the letters S.S. were drawn on various walls in the city.

Hungary - In the city of Tatabanya the Jewish cemetery was desecrated.

Bulgaria - The Dimcho Debelianov primary school in Sofia, known as the 'Jewish School', was set on fire with two Molotov cocktails which were thrown through the windows. The school guard heard the sounds of exploding glass and extinguished the fire before the fire department came. No serious damage was done.

Slovakia - The Jewish cemetery in Luc'enec, central Slovakia, was desecrated. Obscenities against the Jewish community were drawn on 19 gravestones and one gravestone was smashed.

Russia - In the Belayeva district in Moscow, three yeshivah students who left the subway station near the Manchester Yeshivah (a Lubovich yeshiva connected with England) were attacked and severely beaten by a group of ruffians and required medical treatment. It is assessed that the attackers were spurred on by 1st May demonstrations which had taken place that same day. (It is accepted that at events organized by the Communist Party, anti-Semitic placards and signs are carried).

Poland - A delegation of Israeli youth from the Mevo'ot Hanegev school were attacked by skinhead ruffians while they were visiting the old city of Warsaw. The skinheads shouted obscenities at the group and saluted the Nazi salute towards them. They also threw beer cans at them. A fistfight developed between the group and the ruffians who began to hit the boys with belts. Three of the boys from the delegation were slightly injured.

Uruguay - A fire broke out in the area of the memorial to Holocaust victims in Montevideo. Security forces who arrived at the scene found a dummy bomb and an abusive letter. The memorial plaque was damaged as a result of the fire. The proximity of the incident to Holocaust Day indicated the character of the perpetrators and their goal. In the abusive letter, among other things, was written 'We invite the Jewish invaders to leave our dear country where they will be destroyed...'.

Australia - A brick which had a note attached to it with anti-Semitic expressions was thrown through the window of a Jewish home in Sydney.

Two intentionally set fires broke out in a Jewish educational institution at the University of Sydney. The second fire caused damage to the library.

U.S. - On the San Francisco State University campus a Jewish student who had won an academic prize was attacked while he was leaving the platform. He fell over backwards and an anti-Semitic sticker was pasted to his mouth.

Threats

Britain - Two men of Arab appearance passed on a threat of an explosion in the Hammersmith and West Kensington Synagogue in west London to the wife of the synagogue guard, who had been standing near the synagogue. The police evacuated the synagogue and searched the premises but found nothing.

A false alarm on the planting of a bomb in a Jewish synagogue was received by the BBC broadcasting network. In the conversation it was stated that 'We of the Hess Group planted a bomb in a Jewish synagogue'.

France - The announcement of a threat and obscenities were left on the answering machine of the Betar Club in Paris. The abusive language was of right-wing and radical tone, such as 'Dirty Jews', 'Jews should be finished off with gas', 'We'll wipe out all the Jews', etc.

Sweden - In the Hillel school in Stockholm anti-Semitic e-mail was received, signed with the words 'Heil Hitler'. The school received two more threatening announcements in the same vein.

A 13-year-old girl studying at the Hillel school received an anti-Semitic threatening letter in her home mail box. The letter was apparently written by a non-Swedish young person (because the style was poor and full of mistakes) and was signed 'Heil Hitler'.

An anti-Semitic threat was also received by e-mail at the Hatikvah Youth Club in Stockholm. The e-mail sender had been convicted in the past for racial harassment and other crimes.

Australia - A threat of a bomb planted against the 'Bloody Jews' was left on the answering machine of the Shalom College at the New South Wales University in Sydney.

A threatening conversation was received at the Melbourne Communal Organization 'warning' of a shooting that would take place during a Jewish celebration.

A harassing anti-Semitic conversation was received at an educational institution in Sydney. Three additional conversations were received at the officers of the Jewish community in Sydney.

Brazil - The Associacao Israelite Jewish club in Porto Alegre received an announcement of a bomb. The unknown caller spoke with the non-Jewish club guard and said he belonged to an Islamic group. The guard summoned the police who searched the premises for an explosive charge. Nothing was found.

Mexico - An anonymous phonecall on a bomb planted was received at the Sefardi synagogue on Monterey Street in Mexico City. The synagogue was evacuated and searched. Nothing was found.

Propaganda

Britain - Graffiti was drawn on the synagogue fence in Wembley and the path leading to the synagogue.

Stickers belonging to the radical right-wing British National Party (BNP) were found pasted to lampposts on the street leading to the synagogue and the entrance gate of the Belmont United Synagogue in Stanmore, Middlesex.

Azerbaijan - Anti-Semitic slogans have recently appeared in Baku such as 'Kill the Jews'. Beside the slogans appears a Star of David with a Nazi symbol inside it.

Australia - The offices of the Betar youth movement in Melbourne were covered with graffiti, including a drawing of a swastika.

U.S. - On the campus of San Francisco State University, during the celebration of 'Environment Day', a placard was hung with an Israeli flag and a swastika inside it beside an American flag with a dollar sign and the statement 'One bullet for each settler' and 'Death to Fujimori and his Zionist gangs' (following the liberation of the hostages in Peru). Some days after there was an event on campus called 'Zionism is Racism' during which the 'Protocols of the Elders of Zion' were read aloud. The Jewish editor of the campus newspaper wrote an article denouncing the anti-Semitic appearances on campus. Following this, the editorial offices were broken into, and 6,000 copies of the newspaper were stolen and destroyed.

Struggle

Italy/Vatican - The president of the United Jewish Communities in Italy, Mrs. Tulio Zeevi, sent a protest letter to Cardinal Cassidi who is the president of the Committee for Religious Relations with the Jews and expressed her protest on a number of issues:

a. A new stamp was circulated with a miniature drawing from the Christian scriptures of the Middle Ages. In the drawing there is an image of Jesus and around it a number of people dressed in hats identifying them as Jews. The picture could be interpreted as anti-Semitic.

b. The recently published book 'The Jews and the Church', written by Monsignor Vitaliano Mattioli, refers to the Jews as the guilty ones in the Holocaust. The main topics in the book are in favor of the Church and its innocence for hundreds of years in everything connected with anti-Semitism and harm to the Jews, and justification of Pope Pius XII during World War II and the Holocaust.

c. The 'Jewish Festival' - This event takes place every year in a small village in Sicily during Easter where people dressed as Jews act out great joy over Jesus' crucifixion and death.

Sweden - The Swedish Committee for the Struggle Against Anti-Semitism

(SCAA), lodged a complaint to the authorities against Ahmed Rahmi, who owns an Internet site, a publication and a radio station, called 'Radio Islam' which are used to disseminate anti-Semitic, anti-Zionist and anti-Israeli propaganda and Holocaust denial.

Brazil - President Cardoso signed the new version of the law against racism which is more stringent with lawbreakers in this area. In addition to fines imposed there will also be imprisonment for those convicted. The law imposes two to five years imprisonment for publishing, selling or disseminating symbols, articles and texts, including the use of the swastika for anti-Semitic/Nazi purposes. It also states that a lawsuit has the authority to instruct the cessation of the publication or broadcast of racist material and the confiscation of the entire stock of this kind of material.

Politics and Anti-Semitism