Yerushalayim Man Arrested For Painting ‘There Is A Holocaust In Gaza’ Graffiti In The Holy Sepulchre

Israel Police confirmed on Tuesday that a Yerushalayim resident was arrested on suspicion of spray-painting the words “There is a Holocaust in Gaza” on one of the walls of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in the Old City of Yerushalayim.

The incident comes just a few weeks after the same phrase was discovered spray-painted on the Kosel. Authorities believe the two events may be connected and suspect that the 27-year-old detainee could be responsible for both cases.

According to the police report, officers noticed a suspicious individual roaming near one of the Old City entrances. The man was later detained close to the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, where police found a can of spray paint in his possession.

Authorities added that security footage from Yerushalayim’s surveillance cameras helped confirm that the suspect was the person who had sprayed the graffiti inside the church, which read, “There is a Holocaust in Gaza.”

The suspect was taken into custody and is facing a pending court case as the investigation continues.

Initial findings from the investigation indicate that this same 27-year-old individual is also responsible for the graffiti found on the Kosel earlier this month.

During that earlier case, a judge at the Yerushalayim Magistrate’s Court denied a police request to keep the suspect in custody for an extended period in connection with the vandalism at both the Kosel and the Great Synagogue.

The judge ruled that there was no justification to delay the investigation by keeping the suspect detained.

Police had originally sought an additional five days of detention, arguing that the suspect posed a potential risk and could interfere with the inquiry. However, a statement from authorities confirmed that the 27-year-old, a Ramot resident, would instead be released under restrictive conditions.

Rav Shmuel Rabinowitz, rov of the Kosel and mekomos hakedoshim, strongly condemned the incident. “A holy place is not a place to express protests,” he said, calling on police to locate those responsible and take proper action.

{Matzav.com Israel}