Members of Fredericton’s Jewish group had been shocked to see the state of town’s synagogue when arriving on Saturday morning. A number of home windows had been shattered attributable to an act of vandalism.
Pictures circulating on-line confirmed damaged glass each inside and surrounding the door positioned on the Sgoolai Israel synagogue’s entrance.
Saturday is Worldwide Holocaust Remembrance Day.
An in depth-up shot of the Fredericton synagogue’s vandalized door.
Anna Mandin
“The Fredericton Police Power obtained a report from a involved passerby relating to harm noticed on the Synagogue located in downtown Fredericton,” police mentioned in a launch on Saturday afternoon, including that an investigation was begun following their arrival.
Fredericton Police added that they’re working to find out whether or not “the harm resulted from focused hostility or different circumstances.”
Ivan Levine, former president of the synagogue, mentioned a rabbi and the congregation who had been main a service on Saturday had been the primary to come back throughout the vandalism.
“It’s a really unhappy day in Fredericton,” he mentioned. “To suppose that our fathers and forefathers have contributed to this metropolis, have been so charitable … and that is what just a few unhealthy apples have finished.”
Levine mentioned plans for repairing the home windows and putting in safety cameras are already underway.
“We thought we by no means actually wanted (safety), however I suppose now we do,” he mentioned. “Sufficient is sufficient.”
Susan Holt, chief of New Brunswick’s Liberal Occasion, expressed her frustration towards the incident on-line on Saturday.
“Simply noticed the horrible information & photos of the antisemitic desecration of the Fredericton synagogue,” Holt mentioned in an announcement on X, including {that a} vigil will probably be held on the synagogue on Sunday afternoon. “All are welcome to hitch and stand in opposition to hate.”
David Coon, chief of the New Brunswick Inexperienced Occasion, additionally condemned the vandalism in a social media put up.
“The Fredericton Synagogue was vandalized on Worldwide Holocaust Remembrance Day in what can solely be described as an act of hate,” he mentioned.
— with information from Anna Mandin
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