Jerusalem monastery, Arab-Jewish school attacked

JTA

JERUSALEM — Graffiti attacks against non-Jewish targets have continued in Israel, this time at a Jewish-Arab bilingual school and a Christian monastery. 

“Death to Arabs” and “Kahane was right” was painted on the Hand in Hand Center for Jewish-Arab Education elementary school in Jerusalem on Tuesday morning. The Jewish and Arab students at the school study both Hebrew and Arabic together. The school is a symbol of coexistence in Jerusalem, according to Haaretz. Meir Kahane favored the deportation of Arabs from Israel.

The Greek monastery, an 11th-century holy site in a valley below Israel’s Knesset, was also vandalized with painted slogans, reading “Jesus dropped dead,” “Death to Christians” and “Price tag.” The graffiti was signed by “The Maccabees of Migron,” referring to an illegal outpost.

“Price tag” refers to the strategy that extremist settlers have adopted to exact a price in attacks on Palestinians and Arabs in retribution for settlement freezes and demolitions, or for Palestinian attacks on Jews.

Jerusalem police have not determined whether the two attacks are related.

“I am a priest and I forgive,” Father Claudio of the monastery told reporters.

The attacks follow at least two similar attacks in recent days on homes in Palestinian villages in the West Bank.