Pod Save America Hosts Call on Democrats to Cut All Israel Military Aid, No Longer Accept AIPAC Funding
Jews, Israelis Targeted in Austria Amid Surge in Antisemitic Incidents; Local Jewish Community Calls for Action
‘All of Our Strength’: Over 1,000 Pro-Israel Activists Gather in DC for Solidarity Conference
‘Devastated’: Wesley LePatner, Killed in Manhattan Mass Shooting, Was a Jewish Communal, Philanthropic Leader
Sen. Angus King Vows to No Longer Vote for Israel Military Aid Until Gaza Conditions Improve
Europe Won’t Pressure Israel to ‘Commit Suicide’ Amid Gaza Backlash, Palestinian State Push, Says Israeli FM
Israel’s National Soccer Coach Attacked in Athens Before Soccer Fans Chant ‘F–K Israel, Free Palestine’ at Match
New York Judge Sentences Neo-Nazi to 5 Years for Livestreaming Bomb Threats Against Jewish Hospitals
US Pressures Lebanon to Issue Cabinet Decision to Disarm Hezbollah Before Talks Continue
UK Plans to Recognize Palestinian State in September Unless Israel Meets Conditions, Starmer Says
Tunisian Police Arrest Five Suspects Tied to Synagogue Firebombing
Error: Contact form not found.
by JNS.org
The historic Ghriba Synagogue in Tunisia. Photo: Issam Barhoumi via Wikimedia Commons.
JNS.org – Tunisian authorities arrested five suspects for last week’s firebombing of the historic Ghriba Synagogue on the island of Djerba.
According to Tunisian news reports, four men, ages 19-20, were arrested last Friday by national security units. The suspects, who are not known to belong to any extremist groups, confessed to making four Molotov cocktails that they threw at the synagogue as part of general unrest that has gripped the country in recent weeks. A fifth suspect was arrested last Saturday night.
The Jewish site was set on fire after assailants threw firebombs into the building’s yard. The synagogue was empty at the time and the fire was extinguished quickly. The fire caused a small amount of damage to the building’s structure.
Violent anti-austerity protests have erupted in Tunisia in recent weeks over the country’s high unemployment rate and economic stagnation. According to reports, more than 700 people have been arrested as the government has promised a series of social reforms to address the concerns of the protesters. The demonstrations coincide with the seventh anniversary of the “Arab Spring” protests that began in Tunisia in January 2011.
It is believed that Jews constructed the Ghriba Synagogue after fleeing the Land of Israel following either the destruction of Jerusalem’s First Temple in 586 B.C. or the destruction of the Second Temple in 70 B.C. In 2002, the Tunisian synagogue was hit by an Al-Qaeda suicide bombing that killed 21 people.
