Teen stabs Jewish man in Zurich, reportedly shouts ‘Death to the Jews’
Victim, an ultra-Orthodox man in his 50s, seriously injured in attack; police say they are looking at all lines of investigation, haven’t ruled out racist assault
A teenager stabbed and seriously injured an ultra-Orthodox man in Zurich on Saturday evening, reportedly shouting “Death to all Jews” as he carried out the attack.
The 15-year-old attacker was quickly arrested at the scene of the assault, Swiss media reported.
The victim, 50, suffered serious injuries and was taken to the hospital, where his condition was said to stabilize.
The CrownHeights info website identified the man as Meir Zvi Jung. It said the Hatzalah first responder service, which mainly attends to the Jewish community, swiftly arrived at the scene and treated the man.
Witnesses said the attacker shouted antisemitic statements before and during the attack.
Zurich city police said that all lines of investigation were being explored and that they “explicitly include the possibility of an antisemitic-motivated crime,” the local Blich outlet reported.
There was said to be an altercation between a number of individuals before the stabbing.
In a statement to Swiss media, the Swiss Association of Jewish Communities (SIG) said it was “deeply shocked” by the attack.
Noting that “physical attacks on Jewish people in Switzerland are very rare,” the organization nevertheless added that such incidents have been on the rise amid soaring antisemitism worldwide.
A stabbing attack in Zurich, Switzerland, an Orthodox Jew was stabbed and seriously injured by a Muslim who shouted death to the Jews.
The terrorist was arrested by the police. pic.twitter.com/cTBM8N1H9O— Mossad Commentary (@MOSSADil) March 2, 2024
“It is assumed that no further threat to Jewish people and institutions is expected at the moment. Nevertheless, all members of the Jewish community are called upon to behave cautiously and prudently until further notice,” it said.
The stabbing came against a backdrop of rising antisemitism across Europe and beyond, largely in connection with the war in Gaza, sparked by Hamas’s October 7 attack, during which thousands of terrorists burst into Israel, killing some 1,200 people and kidnapping 253, mostly civilians, amid horrific atrocities.
In response, Israel vowed to destroy Hamas and launched a military campaign to topple the terror group’s regime in Gaza and free the hostages.
The French-speaking Swiss Office against Anti-Semitism and Defamation (Cicad) recently reported that antisemitic incidents in French-speaking Switzerland rose by 68 percent in 2023, with over half since October 7, Blich cited.
