Pro-Palestinian protesters vandalized the complex housing the Israeli mission to the UN in Geneva, Switzerland, on Friday. They sprayed the building’s facade with red paint, poured it on the sidewalk to resemble spilled blood and scrawled graffiti on the walls. Local police have launched an investigation.
Since the Gaza war broke out nearly two years ago, Israeli and Jewish institutions worldwide have faced vandalism and attacks. Seven months after the “Adass Israel” synagogue in Melbourne, Australia, was set on fire, another synagogue in the city was torched three weeks ago. About 20 worshippers, including children, escaped unharmed.
That same weekend, dozens of pro-Palestinian demonstrators protested outside a restaurant owned by Israeli chef Eyal Shani in Melbourne, denouncing the war in Gaza and the involvement of Shahar Segal, CEO of the restaurant chain, in the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF).
The protesters smashed windows and chanted “Death to the IDF.” Police dispersed the crowd and one woman was slightly injured while another, aged 28, was arrested. On Thursday, a 31-year-old Oregon resident, Domagoj Patkovic, was sentenced to five years in prison for making threats against healthcare institutions linked to the Jewish community in New York.
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Patkovic, from Portland, admitted to making at least six threatening calls to hospitals and nursing homes between May and September 2021, vowing to bomb them and using blatant antisemitic slurs. In some instances, he livestreamed the threats on Discord, a messaging platform popular among gamers, where dozens of users watched and encouraged him.
A week ago, a Jewish man was assaulted on a bus in Dublin, Ireland, by an attacker who accused Israel of “committing genocide in Gaza” and claimed “Jews are murderers.” The assailant slapped the man and tried to snatch his mobile phone.
Footage of the incident captured the attacker saying he could identify Jews by their faces. The bus driver called the police, who arrested the assailant. He was released the following day.