Jewish Gravestones Smashed at Jerusalem’s Mount of Olives
Gravestones were smashed, and trees and bushes set on fire in the Mount of Olives cemetery in eastern Jerusalem.
The vandalism was discovered after midnight on Wednesday morning, when reports of flames and smoke led firefighters to the scene, according to reports.
At least ten gravestones were smashed and also burnt, including that of Nathan Mileikowsky, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s grandfather.
The Fire Department confirmed that the fire was a deliberate act of arson.
Deputy Commander of the Police’s Jerusalem District, Brig.-Gen. Avshalom Peled, told Israeli lawmakers last month during a tour of the cemetery that over the next four years some 160 security cameras will be installed to protect the cemetery and that more police officers will be stationed there, Ynet reported. Though vandalism reportedly has declined as more security cameras are installed, it does continue on a regular basis.
The cemetery, on a hill above the Old City of Jerusalem, has about 150,000 graves, some up to 3,000 years old.
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