Moscow’s main Jewish cemetery was vandalized Saturday. Vandals damaged 15 tombstones and left anti-Semitic graffiti on two graves in the Vostryakovskoe Jewish cemetery in a Moscow suburb, police said. Prosecutors opened a criminal case, treating the incident as a hate crime. In a separate development Sunday, Jews held a ceremony in another Jewish cemetery in the Moscow area for books damaged by a May 10 fire that destroyed a historic wooden synagogue. Arson is suspected. Chabad organized the burial ceremony for the damaged books. The Federation of Jewish Communities, a Chabad-led umbrella organization, said negotiations were under way to have officials in Malachovka, a village near Moscow, allocate a plot of land for a new synagogue.
Help ensure Jewish news remains accessible to all. Your donation to the Jewish Telegraphic Agency powers the trusted journalism that has connected Jewish communities worldwide for more than 100 years. With your help, JTA can continue to deliver vital news and insights. Donate today.
The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.
