2023-11-02 12:11:01
After the arson attack on the Jewish part of Vienna’s central cemetery on the night of All Saints’ Day, the investigation is in full swing. Traces of evidence were found in the burnt-out anteroom of the ceremonial hall and are now being examined for forensic purposes, the police announced on Thursday. The affected part of the cemetery – like all other Jewish facilities – was monitored; the police kept a low profile on details for tactical reasons.
The police also did not want to reveal details about what traces were involved on Thursday for tactical reasons, as spokeswoman Julia Schick said in the APA interview. The fire team of the State Criminal Police Office (LKA) and officials from the State Office for the Protection of the Constitution and Combating Terrorism (LVT) are entrusted with the investigation.
The perpetrator or perpetrators also sprayed National Socialist symbols – a swastika and the words “Hitler” – on the outer wall. The investigation is underway on suspicion of arson, property damage and repeated activity. In this regard, reports were filed against unknown persons. It is still unclear how the perpetrators got into the cemetery and into the anteroom of the hall.
According to the police, the part of the cemetery near the IV gate was monitored. This is also now being evaluated by the responsible authorities. For tactical reasons, the press spokeswoman did not want to give any details about how the surveillance was carried out. “Protecting people has the highest priority,” said Schick.
Meanwhile, on Thursday, the Coordination Committee for Christian-Jewish Cooperation sharply criticized the arson attack and called for unity against anti-Semitism. The committee also pointed out the timing of the anti-Semitic incident in a release: “One week before the commemoration of the November pogroms on November 9, 1938 and on the day before the 3rd anniversary of the Islamist assassination attempt that began in front of the city temple “We are horrified by the arson attack on the ceremonial hall of the Jewish cemetery in Vienna and very concerned about the possibility of practicing religion without fear.”
The committee also draws attention to the sea of lights taking place on Thursday evening at Vienna’s Heldenplatz (6 p.m.), to which the Israelite Cultural Community (IKG) and the civil society initiative “#YesWeCare” have invited. The rally will commemorate the people taken hostage by Hamas in Israel and will also send a message against anti-Semitism, terror, violence and hatred. Three relatives of hostages will also be present. Vice Chancellor Werner Kogler (Greens) has also announced his coming.
On Thursday, the Protestant Church’s Reformed state superintendent Thomas Hennefeld said he was “deeply shocked” by the arson in the Jewish part of Vienna’s central cemetery. Hennefeld – also the Evangelical Church’s representative for Christian-Jewish dialogue – warned the Protestant press service not to give anti-Semitism any space and to take decisive action against anyone who fomented it. The Evangelical Lutheran Bishop Michael Chalupka had already condemned the anti-Semitic attack on Wednesday.
Meanwhile, Lower Austria’s Governor Johanna Mikl-Leitner (ÖVP) declared during the program presentation of the Grafenegg Festival that anti-Semitism should have no place in a tolerant society. “Where laws are not sufficient to have a deterrent effect, we must tighten them up,” she said.
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