World Jewish News

the initials WZO painted on one side and a Star of David and a swastika on the other were found on the ground in front of the steps leading to the monument

Antisemitic graffiti targets WZO in Ukraine

Vandals in northwestern Ukraine sprayed Nazi symbols and other antisemitic graffiti that targeted the World Zionist Organization, the organization learned on Sunday.

According to the WZO, local residents visiting a monument for victims of the Holocaust discovered the graffiti near the site, located in the village of P’yatydni in Volyn Oblast. In 1942, the Nazis killed 20,000 Jews near the village, shooting them execution-style on the edge of giant pits into which the bodies fell.

A local Jewish activist affiliated with the WZO who is engaged in work to fight antisemitism reported the incident.

An equals sign with the initials WZO painted on one side and a Star of David and a swastika on the other were found on the ground in front of the steps leading to the monument.

“We get multiple reports of antisemitic incidents on a daily basis, but this one particularly caught our eye because it was specifically against the WZO,” the acting chairman of the organization, Yaakov Hagoel, told The Jerusalem Post Sunday.

Vladimir Muzichenko, who visited the site to commemorate the victims, also reported antisemitic graffiti at several other locations in the area and instances of grave-robbing.

Other graffiti found at a bus stop included scrawlings of the WZO initials, the word “Judenreich” (sic), the names of Ukrainian parliamentary parties and the Star of David.

By Tamara Zieve

JPost.com