RFE/RL - 3.26.2004

 

Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty

Moldovan Jews Protest Vandalization of Tiraspol Cemetery

The Association of Moldova's Jews and Moldova's Jewish Congress on 23 April called on the government to take appropriate measures in view of the vandalization of the Jewish cemetery in Tiraspol last week, Infotag and Flux reported. Vandals painted over 70 tombstones with Nazi symbols and anti-Semitic inscriptions and destroyed 30 tombstones beyond repair. The groups said that other Jewish cemeteries in Moldova have also been desecrated recently, leading to the conclusion that these acts were premeditated and well-organized. "This outrage...should be viewed as an open form of anti-Semitism and as a direct challenge to the Jewish community not only in Moldova, but on a worldwide scale," the statement said. MS