Swastikas painted on synagogue in New Zealand

Chair of Temple Sinai in Wellington condemns the vandalism: ‘I’m upset by it and outraged by it… but at the same time I’m not entirely surprised’

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

Swastikas outside the Temple Sinai synagogue in Wellington, New Zealand on January 22, 2020. (Wellington City Council via JTA)
Swastikas outside the Temple Sinai synagogue in Wellington, New Zealand on January 22, 2020. (Wellington City Council via JTA)

JTA — Swastikas were found painted on and around a synagogue in Wellington, New Zealand.

One swastika was painted on Wednesday on the Temple Sinai synagogue and several others were found nearby, a Wellington City Council spokesperson told Newshub.

The word “Heil” was also painted nearby.

“I’m upset by it and outraged by it, that we are targeted like that – but at the same time I’m not entirely surprised,” Temple Sinai chair Matthew Smith told NZME.

The vandalism comes days ahead of the 75th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz. On Thursday, Israel commemorated the event at a major conference in Jerusalem attended by dozens of world leaders.

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