Mezuzah defaced with swastikas at the Tiferet Israel Synagogue, Berlin
A mezuzah has been desecrated in the outside entrance to a synagogue in Berlin.
It is believed that mezuzah capsule was opened and a swastika was graffitied on both sides of the parchment inside before the scroll was re-affixed to the door frame at the Tiferet Israel synagogue. It is thought that the incident occurred between Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year, and Yom Kippur. The perpetrator is yet to be identified.
The German Foreign Minister tweeted that “it simply hurt to see something so disgusting,” adding: “This crime must be quickly solved and those responsible punished!”
A recent report, from the Federal Association of Departments for Research and Information on Antisemitism (RIAS), highlighted 1,253 antisemitic incidents had been registered in 2019 across four federal states in Germany, including Berlin. Far-right and neo-Nazi perpetrators accounted for a high proportion of these reported crimes.
Following a further increase in antisemitic incidents during the COVID-19 pandemic, Josef Schuster, head of the Central Council of Jews in Germany, has said that antisemitism in schools, on the streets and the internet are now “commonplace” for Jews in the country.
At a rally on 1st August, 20,000 protesters demanded an end to coronavirus prevention measures in the German capital, many of whom were seen carrying or wearing antisemitic propaganda, including swastikas and yellow stars.
On 15th September, the 70th anniversary of the Central Council of Jews in Germany, German Chancellor Angela Merkel said that it is “shameful” that antisemites are becoming increasingly bold in their expressions of hatred and racism. The Chancellor stated that if “education and enlightenment” could not address such attitudes, disciplinary action as sanctioned by criminal law would be enacted.
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