Anti-Israeli slogans written across properties in Larnaca have caused reactions in Israel, with the incident gaining coverage in Israeli media outlets on Holocaust Memorial Day.
The graffiti, which targeted shops, homes and other locations linked to Israeli interests, has drawn condemnation from the European Jewish Association (EJA). The incident coincides with a recent decision to redirect Israeli airline flights from Paphos to Larnaca due to security concerns.
Local authorities in Larnaca removed the graffiti, whilst Police are investigating the incident, according to sources familiar with the matter. Investigators have obtained CCTV footage showing suspect movements in central Larnaca and Oroklini.
Rabbi Menachem Margolin, president of the EJA, said: “From our close cooperation with Cypriot leaders, we have no doubt that the perpetrators of these acts of hate will be identified by law enforcement and punished to the full extent of the law. On the day the world unites to remember the horrors of the Holocaust and makes the promise ‘Never Again,’ it is shocking and deeply disturbing to witness such a blatant act of hate.”
The EJA condemned the graffiti, stating that what appears as “merely” anti-Israeli sentiment has become a common cloak for global antisemitism, noting the timing of the incident on Holocaust Memorial Day.
Margolin added that the act “desecrates the memory of Holocaust victims and reminds us how vital it is to combat the rise of antisemitism in Europe and worldwide. It also underlines the importance of including Holocaust education in every country’s school curricula and redoubling efforts to promote tolerance, understanding and mutual respect.”
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