‘Free Palestine’ graffiti sprayed on Austrian synagogue

Vandals deface lone Jewish house of worship in city of Graz; head of community blames ‘anti-Israel anti-Semitism’

Cnaan Liphshiz was a Jewish World reporter at The Times of Israel

A man walks past the defaced facade of the synagogue of Graz, Austria on August 19, 2020. (Christian Jauschowetz via JTA)
A man walks past the defaced facade of the synagogue of Graz, Austria on August 19, 2020. (Christian Jauschowetz via JTA)

JTA — Unidentified perpetrators spray-painted graffiti reading “Free Palestine” on a synagogue in the Austrian city of Graz.

The graffiti, which included another slogan, “Our country and our language are red lines,” were discovered Wednesday at the city’s only synagogue, Elie Rosen, president of the Jewish Community in Graz, told the Wiener Zeitung news outlet.

The messages were painted on a wall of the synagogue that was built from the bricks of the original structure that the Nazis destroyed in 1938.

“It’s not right-wing extremism,” Rosen said. “In Graz we are increasingly dealing with left-wing and anti-Israel anti-Semitism. We can see that clearly.”

The city, which is located about 80 miles southwest of Vienna, has about 150 Jews.

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