Jewish graves at a central Auckland cemetery have been desecrated with anti-semitic messages.
Police are appealing for information after about 20 gravestones were vandalised at the Symonds Street Cemetery, on the corner of Symonds St and Karangahape Rd, sometime between Wednesday afternoon and this morning, when the damage was discovered.
Some headstones had large graffiti swastikas crudely sprayed on them while others had expletive-ridden anti-semitic messages scrawled over them.
The cemetery, Auckland’s first, has long been the target of vandalism and also attracts homeless people.
Rabbi Mendel Goldstein, Director of Chabad New Zealand which is located in Auckland, was shocked by the “senseless criminal act by hate-filled cowards.”
“Racism and the desecration of graves will not be tolerated by the good people of this great country,” he said. “We, as a nation, need to serve as the voice for the voiceless victims by bringing the perpetrates to justice.”
“We have every confidence in our world class law-enforcement agencies who are capable and committed to hunting down these criminals and bringing them to justice.”
this is terrible!!!!!!!!!!!
thanks for chabad to be the first to speak out against this!!!
this is crazy! disgustted, i am
just when your sure your comfortable in galus, that you belong here, that your accepted, your slapped with something like this, that jolts you back into reality. We’re not meant to be here. We need Moshiach right now.
WHY WOULD SOMEONE DO THAT!!!!!!
H is the eighth letter in the alphabet. It is slang for Heil Hitler.Yemach Shemam.
the 88 is a secret code for the 8th letter of the alphabet hh heil hit.. yemach shemo vezachro
8th letter of the alphabet HH. hail…….
what does this mena?
Over and over and over we see the sadness, the disgrace,, the needless hatred, the vicious acts, the violence, that takes place on a daily basis among human beings. I hope the perpetrators are caught and get what they deserve. This is heart breaking, yet unfortunately, not too surprising.