Greek Jews express ‘deep sadness’ over anti-Semitic synagogue vandalism

Central Jewish Council of Greece calls on authorities to take ‘all measures’ to protect Jewish sites and combat anti-Semitism

By AFP 31 December 2019, 7:29 pm 1

Edit

Anti-Semitic graffiti reading "Jewish snakes out" on the wall outside a synagogue in Trikala, Greece on December 31, 2019. (KIS)

ATHENS, Greece (AFP) — Jewish community leaders in Greece on Tuesday slammed the “profane” daubing of anti-Semitic slogans at a recently restored synagogue, the latest in a series of similar incidents.

“Shameful and insulting slogans, which profane the recently restored historic synagogue of Trikala, provoke indignation and deep sadness,” the Central Jewish Council of Greece (KIS) said in a statement.

“Jewish snakes out,” was just one slogan daubed in bright blue paint on the wall of the building, one of the oldest synagogues in the country, some 300 kilometers (185 miles) north of Athens.

KIS added the incident showed “the struggle against anti-Semitism must continue” while calling on Greek authorities to take “all measures to arrest those behind this desecration and protect Jewish sites in Trikala,” one of Greece’s oldest Jewish communities going back centuries.

There has been a spate of similar incidents in Greece, where the Jewish community today numbers just a few thousand.