FALL RIVER, Mass. — Police say 59 gravestones at a Jewish cemetery in Massachusetts were defaced with anti-Semitic graffiti, about twice as many as initially thought days earlier.
Fall River police said Thursday in a Facebook post that they came up with the higher number after a row-by-row inspection of Hebrew Cemetery. Of those 59, two had been knocked over.
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The stones were defaced with swastikas and phrases including “Expel the Jew” and “Hitler was right” in what appeared to be black marker.
Police were alerted on Sunday by a cemetery maintenance worker and are treating it as a hate crime.
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No arrests have been made. The Herald News reports that rewards totalling $12,500 are being offered for information that leads to an arrest, including $10,000 given anonymously to Congregation Adas Israel, a city synagogue.
Stephen Silverman, who is the president of the local synagogue, told CNN that the community is upset by the incident but still resilient.
“The ugly head of anti-Semitism has raised its head again,” Silverman said, adding that the U.S. needs to do more to combat hate.
“America has got to be aware of all the situations going on — it’s getting worse and worse.”
— With files from Global News reporter Maham Abedi
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