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JEWISH CENTRES AND schools across the US coped with another wave of bomb threats earlier this week as officials in Philadelphia made plans to repair and restore hundreds of vandalised headstones at a Jewish cemetery.
Jewish Community Centres and day schools in at least a dozen states received threats, according to the JCC Association of North America.
No bombs were found. All 21 buildings — 13 community centers and eight schools — were cleared by Monday afternoon and had resumed normal operations, the association said.
It was the fifth round of bomb threats against Jewish institutions since January, prompting outrage and exasperation among Jewish leaders as well as calls for an aggressive federal response to put a stop to it.
On Friday, a man was arrested on suspicion of being behind eight of the threats.
“The Justice Department, Homeland Security, the FBI, and the White House, alongside Congress and local officials, must speak out — and speak out forcefully — against this scourge of anti-Semitism impacting communities across the country,” said David Posner, an official with JCC Association of North America.
“Members of our community must see swift and concerted action from federal officials to identify and capture the perpetrator or perpetrators who are trying to instill anxiety and fear in our communities.”
The FBI and the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division are probing the threats.
Attorney General Jeff Sessions called the vandalism and bomb threats serious, unacceptable behavior and said the department will “do what it can to assist in pushing back … and prosecuting anybody that we can prove to be a part of it.”
“We are a nation that is a diverse constituency, and we don’t need these kind of activities,” Sessions said.
Hundreds of headstones, some of them more than 100 years old, were cut in half, local media reported Sunday.
A local rabbi, who was unnamed, told ABC television affiliate WPVI that the affected graves at the historic Mount Carmel Jewish cemetery in Philadelphia’s northeastern Wissinoming neighborhood also included those of one-time members of the Quaker and Muslim communities.
“We’re not interested in any narrative about victimisation and as heartbreaking as this is, we are strong together,” the rabbi said.
“I just met two congregants of mine who were here, one of whom has relatives. His way of responding was to go row by row and count, and he’s counted over 500 tombstones.”
New Jersey resident Aaron Mallin discovered the vandalism on Sunday when he came to visit his father’s grave at the cemetery.
“It’s just very disheartening that such a thing would take place,” he told WPVI.
Police say they are investigating the vandalism.
The Anti-Defamation League has offered a $10,000 reward for information leading to the arrest and conviction of those responsible.
Israeli Foreign Ministry spokesman Emmanuel Nahshon posted a statement on Twitter saying, “#Philadelphia Jewish cemetery desecration is shocking and a source of worry. Full confidence #US authorities catch and punish culprits.”
Latest anti-Semitic attacks
The attack comes a week after more than 100 headstones were damaged at a Jewish cemetery in St Louis, Missouri.
The incident prompted a Muslim-led crowdfunding campaign to raise more than $100,000 to repair the cemetery, and a visit by Vice President Mike Pence.
Among more recent attacks, vandals spray-painted swastikas on several cars, highway overpasses, buildings and an elementary school playground over the weekend in Buffalo, New York, The Buffalo News reported.
After remaining silent on the subject for several days, President Donald Trump today decried the anti-Semitic threats against Jewish community centers across America as “horrible” and “painful.”
Other groups have also been targeted. On Wednesday, a drunk white man fatally shot an Indian engineer and wounded another in Kansas City, screaming racial slurs and telling them “Get out of my country!”
With reporting from the Associated Press
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“The incident prompted a Muslim-led crowdfunding campaign to raise more than $100,000 to repair the cemetery”
Lovely to see that the Muslim-led crowdfunding raised a considerable amount of money.
This also reminds me of their generosity to the residents of Flint.
Well done!
Puts the Jewish political lobby (ADL) to shame by only promising $10k. Now only they could put that $10k directly to the crowdfund, and let the American police do their job.
Encouraging to see many local Muslims helping to clean up after the damage done in these cemeteries. The losers behind this vandalism are trying to stir up hate.
@Jurgen Remak: just part of their culture
Israel’s ongoing human rights violations against the Palestinians and their abuse of the term Anti-Semitic to silence their critics has some part to play here.
So Israel, thousands of miles away.l, is to blame for the desecration of the graves of dead Jews. You do know this kinda thing was happening long before Israel existed as a modern state?
@Brian MacCarthaigh: q doubt that the perpetrators were Palestinian sympathisers. That’s just contrived.
Yeah it’s their own fault Brian, right? As usual.
@Brian MacCarthaigh: Brian, you are aware that a huge majority of Jews hate Israel and the entire idea of Israel.
Here’s one for you
@Brian MacCarthaigh:Indeed Brian. At the end of the day AIPACs manipulation of the US political system (which is why they exist after all) and Israeli siphoning of billions of US tax payer’s money to continue their oppression of Palestinians has everything to do with people’s behaviour towards Judaism. It is so wrong that all Jews are tarred with the zionist brush because it’s simply not true,and the desecration of anyone’s place of rest should always be met with disgust, no matter who does it, why and where.
why is there no mention of the fact that the guy calling in the bomb threats was a black Left-wing blogger? Had he been a white Right-wing blogger, it would be the whole story.
@James: He’s only behind 8 of them. Someone or others are behind the rest. But yes, that guy’s twitter account makes clear that he’s a far lefty, anti-capitalist, anti-white racist and a convert to Islam. No questions are being asked about who stirred up his hatred of Jews or how he was emboldened to express his anti-Semitism.
The fundamentalist on both sides will thrive on this ,what a pity
The emboldened far right March forward. Be afraid be very afraid
Considering the fact that the current US administration is more aligned to right wing Jewish ideology than at any other time I can’t see how you can blame the so called far right for this.
@Dain Everything was going so good for the Jews, them and God were like that. He even sent a man down to part the red sea for them to pass through (not as easy as it sounds). But then God decided to send his son down to update the message, especially the love thy neighbour stuff. But didn’t the Jews only go an kill him with weapons they got of America. Well needless to say that pissed God right off and its been downhill ever since.
Didn’t Tiberius and Pilate have weapons of mass destruction though that could have wiped out all the Jews unless they crucified their saviour Brian.
Hey Fiona leave me out of it!
Also, in that fairytale things weren’t going so good for the Jews before jesus’ death and even birth, they were slaves.
I hear you’ve been a very naughty boy Brian..
@Fionn Bohane: Well to be fair I always try to look on the bright side………
@joe o hare:
Go back to bed
@Daveokeeffe Jews were never slaves in the Ronan empire at the time of Jesus…They were colonised by Rome not the same thing…
Well I for one am not at all shocked or surprised at the rise of anti-Semitic sentiment, not only in the US but right across the world and particularly in the EU.
Obama could barely conceal his hatred of the Jewish state and one of his final acts as president was to spitefully allow UN Resolution Resolution 2334 to pass, a crowning moment in his miserable track record on the Middle East, this despite the fact that Resolution 465 condemning settlements already existed, To this day, 47 resolutions concerning the Israel-Palestine conflict have been adopted by the UNSC. 18 resolutions against Israel were adopted during the UN General Assembly in September 2016 alone, 12 resolutions adopted in the Human Rights Council. These were more than those focused on Syria, North Korea, Iran, and South Sudan combined.
Outgoing United States Ambassador to the United Nations Samantha Power remarked that for as long as Israel has been a member of the UN it has been “treated differently” from other nations.
Even Ban Ki Moon has admitted that there has always been an inherent bias within the UN against Israel and that a a disproportionate volume of resolutions against Israel has foiled the ability of the UN to fulfill its role effectively.
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/middle-east/ban-ki-moon-united-nations-disproportionate-israel-focus-resolutions-palestinians-human-rights-danny-a7481961.html
This anti Israel bias is commonly shared by Arabs, Muslims, Islamists, liberals and leftists of differing hues.
The liberal press fuel much of the anti Israel/Jewish sentiment.
Ireland in particular has an appalling record when it comes to biased reportage in the Middle East.
Take the Irish Times e.g. the ‘Paper of record’ whose Middle East correspondent for over 20 years, Michael Jansen is a convert to Islam, a woman who has written about her pilgrimage to Mecca.
The Guardian newspaper employs editorial staff who regularly attend pro Palestine rallies and spout incendiary anti Jewish rhetoric from the stage.
Check out any Israel’Palestine article on any liberal publication and the forums are infested with Hamas trolls whose Facebook pages are festooned with pro Hamas, pro Hezbollah, anti Jewish, anti American propaganda.
The left who historically hate all things American and by extension Israel have become emboldened by an irresponsibly biased press with the result that incidents such as the above are sadly becoming more and more the norm these days.
@Emmet O’Keeffe:speaking of Trolls, you have heard heard of Hasbara https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hasbara_Fellowships
This is OK I suppose as anyone apposed to such behaviour are obviously anti semitic yea. In fact what you just posted stinks of the anti Islamic hatred, but that’s OK because your sticking up for zionism, right.
@Richard Brady:
Yes I’ve heard of Hasbara.
I’ve also heard of Pallywood.
Emmet as the fella at he Bar would say your talkin some scutter ! https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=w0LyN3ERpxo
On the button Emmett the idiot left in Ireland are constantly disgracing themselves by supporting Hamas and other terrorists while attacking democratic Israel
I think you were supposed to say apartheid Israel
Lar, that shows you don’t understand apartheid. Hope this helps: https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2015/may/22/israel-injustices-not-apartheid-state
You insult south Africans who suffered under real apartheid SA by eqating it to Israel… https://youtu.be/AcEL-NlxBk0
@Emmet O’Keeffe:
Well said. I have mentioned before about the antisemitism inside US universities. Nsin culprits are Muslim Brotherhood sponsored groups such as MSA, SJP, CAIR, IIIT etc. A documentary called Hate Spaces was made recently and excerpts can be found on YTube.
@Warthog: What you say is just not true. American university students groove to two predominant themes: partying and sex. Unless your MSA folks bring beer and are porn stars, their impact will be negligible if not zero.Glad to be of help.
@West Cork Lad: Not all university students are the same. Even in the US. That shouldn’t really need pointing out.
I would be very interested in knowing what has emboldened and encouraged the anti Semitic attacks.
Anti-semitism is what encourages anti-Semitic attacks
Probbab
AFP keeping Jews in the news !
Jesus, Sessions quote doesn’t exactly sound determined. Essentially, we’ll catch them if we can, they’ve been naughty
It is time for Jews around the world to stop playing the anti-sematic card. They wouldn’t have survived WW2 without friendly countries to lift them out of turmoil.
@chriskirk There is no international conspirisy of Jews playing any anti Semitic card….Arguments in support of Israel don’t need to say anything about anti Semitism or ww2…Less on the international conspiracy of Jews…
Violation of not just UN resolutions but of humanitarian law plus an extremely long list of crimes against humanity by the state of Israel is what is breeding anti semitism. One crime does not justify the other and Israel are the more guilty party here and their justifications for their crimes getting weaker by the day and a lot more see through
Disgusting.. but I wonder what the level of these types of crimes was like in recent years? Has it actually increased since Trump or are the media just reporting on it more now to push that narrative..
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