Rivlin condemns ‘shocking’ swastika vandalism in UK on Yom Kippur
‘Words of condemnation are not enough,’ says president, sharing photo of neon yellow Nazi symbol daubed on a car in Bristol
President Reuven Rivlin on Tuesday condemned the daubing of a neon-yellow swastika on a car in the United Kingdom a day earlier, during Judaism’s holiest day.
“This is the shocking sight of rising Antisemitism — a swastika sprayed on a car on Yom Kippur in Britain yesterday. Words of condemnation are not enough. We need Holocaust education and remembrance so governments and societies everywhere actively challenge this threat to Jews,” he tweeted, along with a photo of the vandalism.
The incident took place in Bristol’s Kingswood neighborhood. It’s unclear who was responsible.
Local police said they are investigating.
This is the shocking sight of rising #Antisemitism – a swastika sprayed on a car on Yom Kippur in Britain yesterday. Words of condemnation are not enough. We need #Holocaust education and remembrance so governments and societies everywhere actively challenge this threat to Jews. pic.twitter.com/1GMigw7QZI
— Reuven Rivlin (@PresidentRuvi) September 29, 2020
A local Jewish resident, Nick Bayne, who lives across the street from the targeted car, tweeted that he was sickened by the anti-Semitic display.
“We woke up to our neighbor’s car tagged with a giant neon Swastika. It’s Yom Kippur, and this makes me sick both as a Jew and as a human,” he wrote.
“This is the holiest day of the #Jewish year, and to have a swastika suddenly appear RIGHT ACROSS THE STREET FROM OUR FLAT, in #Bristol of all places, is absolutely harrowing. My wife is the granddaughter of Holocaust survivors, and this causes deep upset and anxiety.”
https://twitter.com/TheCheesemason/status/1310515927180603393
Anti-Semitic incidents in the UK have dropped by 13 percent in 2020 compared to the year before, likely due to COVID-19 lockdown regulations, but the 789 events reported between January and June still represent the third-highest number on record for that period, according to a study by a British watchdog group released in July.
The Times of Israel Community.