On Saturday, 20 masked men firebombed a synagogue in Gothenburg — Sweden’s second largest city — with a barrage of Molotov cocktails. The attack occurred amid anti-Israel demonstrations in the city in response to the United State’s recognition of Jerusalem as the capital of Israel.
BREAKING: Synagogue firebombed in Gothenburg, Sweden’s second-largest city; twenty masked individuals involved; Jewish students gathered in the building huddle in basement for safety; authorities block off area to search for attackers. (Expressen)
— Avi Mayer (@AviMayer) December 9, 2017
As reported by the Jewish Telegraphic Agency (JTA), the attack took place during a party held at the synagogue for local Jewish students. Waiting for police to arrive, the students took shelter in the synagogue basement. No injuries were reported.
Photos from the scene of the synagogue firebombing in Gothenburg, Sweden. (GP) pic.twitter.com/osfUkH4i99
— Avi Mayer (@AviMayer) December 9, 2017
The attackers’ identities are not yet known, as police are still investigating the incident.
As Jewish Agency spokesman Avi Mayer noted on Twitter, the synagogue attack in Sweden is part of a larger pattern of anti-Semitism throughout Europe.
The following have all occurred in the past few days, following the United States’ recognition of Israel’s capital, Jerusalem.
London
In London, England, anti-Israel protestors gathered outside the US embassy, chanted calls for war against the Jews.
Berlin
Meanwhile, Islamist protestors in Berlin gathered at Brandenburg Gate chanting “Jews remember Khaybar, the army of Muhammad is returning.” Protesters echoed similar sentiments in Vienna, Austria.
France
And in France, a virulently anti-Semitic organizer regaled more than 400 protestors with calls for boycotts against Israel, in addition to freedom for Palestinian terrorists, Hassan Hamouri (Hamouri was arrested in 2005 for planning to assassinate an Israeli rabbi) and Marwan Barghouti (Barghouti is serving multiple life sentences after being convicted of plotting multiple terrorist attacks).
Sweden
As recently as the night before the synagogue firebombing attack, protesters in Sweden’s third largest city, Malmo, were heard shouting “we want our freedom back and we’re going to shoot the Jews.”
Many will blame President Trump’s temerity to recognize a rudimentary historical fact regarding Jerusalem as the Jewish capital as the impetus behind Saturday’s blatantly anti-Semitic Swedish synagogue attack.
But what apologists for anti-Semitism attempting to bifurcate Jewish identity from the state of Israel fail to address, is that “anti-Israel demonstrators” aren’t attacking some arbitrary Israeli legislation, they’re attacking Jews.