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Antisemitic vandals target offices of two pro-Israel New York congressmen

“I, for one, will not be intimidated,” wrote Rep. Ritchie Torres.

New York City Police Department officer patch. Credit: BrandonKleinPhoto/Shutterstock.
New York City Police Department officer patch. Credit: BrandonKleinPhoto/Shutterstock.

Antisemitic vandals defaced the offices this past week of two pro-Israel New York congressmen.

“The vandalism of one of our offices yesterday is just the latest escalation in the tactics being used by those who sympathize more with Hamas than with Israel,” Rep. Mike Lawler (R-N.Y.) wrote on Dec. 28.

“As I’ve said repeatedly, I want the Palestinian people to be free from their true oppressors—Hamas, a terrorist organization that has been the governing body in Gaza for nearly two decades and has used the Palestinian people as human shields,” he added.

The New York Post shared images of stickers attached to the entrance to one of Lawler’s district offices that state “Blood on your hands Mike Lawler,” “Ceasefire,” “Child murder Lawler,” “Gaza is half children,” “25,000+ murdered,” “Mike Lawler resign” and “Palestinian lives matter.”

Earlier in the week, Rep. Ritchie Torres (D-N.Y.) wrote that “on Christmas Day, anti-Israel extremists vandalized my Bronx office with red paint, symbolizing blood.”

“Covered in ‘blood’ is a doll meant to symbolize Jesus, whom the vandals describe as a ‘Palestinian child messiah,’” Torres wrote. “The escalation in intimidation and incitement against members of Congress feels like it is heading in a dangerous direction. I, for one, will not be intimidated.”

“There’s no reason that the process can’t be dramatically accelerated,” Dan Schnur, a political science lecturer, told JNS.
Katie Wilson, who promised when she was running for mayor to turn off cameras, said that she made the decision after an intelligence briefing from local and federal law enforcement.
“It is troubling that a stadium supported by taxpayer dollars would openly subsidize an event led by an artist known for pushing this dangerous, hateful rhetoric, especially with Florida having one of the largest Jewish populations in our country,” Sen. Rick Scott stated.
Toronto’s police chief said that there will be more barricades and officers in an effort to prevent a repeat of last year’s “gauntlet of hate” near the walk.
Mika Hackner of the North American Values Institute told JNS that “particular attention should be paid to the ‘local institutions’ tasked with carrying on” the foundation’s programs.
The House Armed Services Committee rejected Rep. Ro Khanna’s amendment to delete section 224 from the annual defense bill, which calls for increased cooperation between the U.S. and Israel.