Swiss synagogue, shop firebombed
Synagogue’s library destroyed in fire; local Jewish leader says attack may have been carried out by radical left-wingers
ZURICH - A synagogue and a Jewish-owned shop in the southern Swiss city of Lugano were gutted by fire overnight after a petrol-bomb attack by unknown assailant, police said on Monday.
No one was hurt in either incident.
Police in the Swiss state (canton) of Ticino said the two buildings, located near each other in the centre of Lugano, were attacked around midnight (2300 GMT, Sunday.)
The attackers threw petrol bombs at the doors and through a window, causing a fire in which the synagogue's library was destroyed, Swiss television said.
Meanwhile, the owners of the fabric shop set ablaze by the unknown attackers said they did not receive any threats prior to the attack. Signs of a break-in were found at both buildings, the police said, but declined to comment on the attack’s motive.
'There was no anti-Semitism in Lugano'
The president of the local Jewish community, however, characterized the attacks as anti-Semitic.
Elio Bollag told Ynet the Synagogue that was torched was the last one in town.
“The store (that was set ablaze) was also the last Jewish-owned out of 10 that used to be here,” he said. “It was one of the oldest shops in Lugano.”
The Jewish community has been around in Lugano for 90 years, Bollag said, and added this was the first time he could recall such incident in Switzerland.
“There was no anti-Semitism in Lugano, and that’s why the incident surprised us,” he said. “I think it’s a political act by radical left-wing activists who tie us to politics and make the connection between Jews and Israel.”
The local community is united, Bollag added, and noted that some members of the Jewish community were born in Lugano and lived there their entire lives.
“We keep on getting phone calls from neighbors and friends, Christians and Jews, who express their shock,” he said.
Local Resident Yossi Shukrun, meanwhile, told Ynet Lugano is home to a small Jewish community.
“The synagogue was recently renovated by my family,” he said. “It was an ancient synagogue that was built before the Second World War.”
