A statue of Ana Frankthe young Jewish woman who hid with other Jews for almost two years in a secret annex in Amsterdam during the Holocaust before being detained, was defaced with “Gaza” graffiti, sparking immediate outrage.
The Israel Information and Documentation Center posted a photo on Tuesday showing “Gaza” painted in red on the bottom of the statue at Merwedeplein, a housing complex where Anne Frank and her family lived in Amsterdam before the Nazis took them to inside. hidden in 1942.
“It is truly shameful that anyone would think to draw attention to the Palestinian cause by defaming the image of Anne Frank, an international symbol of the Holocaust,” said Amsterdam councilor Stijn Nijssen. he wrote in a translated post on X.
The American Jewish Committee called it a “vile act of anti-Semitism.”
“What does a young girl brutally murdered by the Nazis have to do with the Palestinian cause? Absolutely nothing,” the organization said. he wrote. “This is a despicable act of hate, not activism.”
The European Jewish Congress criticized it as an act of “anti-Semitism”.
“Such acts disrespect his memory and the 6 million Jews murdered during the Holocaust,” he said. said on X. “We hope the perpetrators are brought to justice quickly.”
The Anne Frank Trust UK said it was “deeply saddened” by the vandalism.
“The vandal may have intended to draw attention to the suffering in Gaza, but by targeting an innocent victim of the Holocaust, his message became one of vicious anti-Semitism,” the organization wrote in a statement. declaration on X, adding: “With anti-Jewish hatred reaching unprecedented levels in many parts of the world, this distressing crime makes clear that anti-bias education is more vital than ever.”
The statue was unveiled in July 2005, according to the Anne Frank Foundationto honor the famous diarist who died aged 15 in the Bergen Belsen camp.
The statue depicts Anne Frank with a school bag under one arm and a purse under the other as she looks in the direction of her home, the foundation said.
Amsterdam police said they were notified of the vandalism on Tuesday afternoon and immediately began an investigation. No arrests had been made as of Thursday morning.
This article was originally published in NBCNews. with
