Israeli-owned eatery in London hit with ‘free Palestine’ graffiti
The words “free Palestine” were spray-painted on the facade of a cafe owned by an Israeli in London, May 14, 2022. (Michael Levi)
(JTA) — Unidentified individuals spray-painted the words “free Palestine” on the facade of an Israeli-owned cafe in London.
The incident, which the owner Michael Levi suspects was an antisemitic hate crime, occurred on May 14 at Michaels Brasserie, the Jewish News of London reported on Tuesday.
The graffiti was painted there late at night on a Saturday, the report said.
Police arrived at the café and documented the incident and are looking into it, Levi told the Jewish News. Levi said that there was nothing Jewish about the cafe’s facade when it was vandalized.
”I can’t really get angry with people who choose this path. I just feel ashamed and hurt, and upset. We are just try to live our lives doing the best we can .. and then this,” he told the newspaper.
The café serves Middle Eastern foods popular in Israel and in Arab countries, including shakshuka, shawarma and smoked eggplant.
This article originally appeared on JTA.org.
I hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, I’d like to ask you to please support the Forward’s award-winning journalism this Passover.
In this age of misinformation, our work is needed like never before. We report on the news that matters most to American Jews, driven by truth, not ideology.
At a time when newsrooms are closing or cutting back, the Forward has removed its paywall. That means for the first time in our 126-year history, Forward journalism is free to everyone, everywhere. With an ongoing war, rising antisemitism, and a flood of disinformation that may affect the upcoming election, we believe that free and open access to Jewish journalism is imperative.
Readers like you make it all possible. Right now, we’re in the middle of our Passover Pledge Drive and we still need 300 people to step up and make a gift to sustain our trustworthy, independent journalism.
Make a gift of any size and become a Forward member today. You’ll support our mission to tell the American Jewish story fully and fairly.
— Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO
Join our mission to tell the Jewish story fully and fairly.
Only 300 more gifts needed by April 30
