20 swastikas spray-painted near Sydney’s Bondi Beach

More than 20 swastikas have been spray-painted on a mural and a shopping center near Bondi Beach in the Australian city of Sydney, with local officials and Jewish groups condemning the incident as an “expression of blatant racism.”

Police in the state of New South Wales (NSW) say Sunday in a statement to local media that “officers from Eastern Suburbs Police Area Command attended and found a section of the mural wall had been defaced with approximately 20 symbols.”

“A short time later three more were located at a shopping center at Bondi Junction.”

Vic Alhadeff, head of the NSW Jewish Board of Deputies, releases a statement condemning the graffiti.

“The swastika represents the ultimate in race hatred and the people of Bondi and indeed all Australians of goodwill will stand together in condemning this shocking display. The Jewish community is appalled at this expression of blatant racism,” he says.

— Michael Bachner