Dozens of bomb threats have been sent to Jewish community centers across the United States since Saturday.
More than 50 JCCs in 23 states have received similar messages via email, the Jewish Telegraph Agency reported.
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Police officers outside the Albany JCC following a bomb threat
(Photo: Andrew Cuomo/Twitter)
Law enforcement authorities do not believe the threats to be credible, but have opened an investigation into the threats.
They are currently trying to identify the origins of the threats.
According to JTA, none of the emails singled out individual institutions or contained anti-Semitic language.
In 2017, Michael Kadar, a 19-year-old American-Israeli citizen, made bomb threats via phone to JCCs around the world. His targets included organizations in the U.S., New Zealand, Australia and Britain.
He was later convicted and sentenced to prison for 10 years.
“Having faced similar threats in 2017, our JCCs have protocols in place to respond to such scenarios,” JTA quoted Doron Krakow, the president of the JCC Association, as saying in a statement.
“We are grateful for the immediate and ongoing response from law enforcement across the country," Krakow said.
Albany Police Department spokesman Steve Smith said that the local JCC was evacuated for several hours as the building underwent a sweep.
According to Smith, the JCC received a “generic email” that mentioned a bomb; there will be a temporary police presence outside the building as parents deliver and collect their children.
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New York Governor Andrew Cuomo talks to police officers outside Albany JCC, which received a bomb threat in recent days
(Photo: Andrew Cuomo/Twitter)
New York Governor Andrew Cuomo paid a solidarity visit to the Albany JCC in the wake of the threat.
“When you threaten a JCC, these are, it’s not just an anti-Semitic attack. You have children who go to the JCC. You have gym facilities here. So, you are really threatening children,” the governor said.
“It is one of the most heinous things you can do. And again, it is fear and it is terror. That is all it is – terror.”
A threat was also sent to the Levin Jewish Community Center in Durham, North Carolina, JTA said.