Category: Synagogue/Jewish Security
Metal thieves cause gas leak after raiding Westcliff synagogue
THIEVES risked causing an explosion at a synagogue when they stole copper piping. Crooks ripped the metal down from Southend and District Reform Synagogue, causing gas to escape into the street for about ten hours. They then carried the ten feet of piping away in full view of passing traffic in London Road, Westcliff. Luckily [...]
US Capitol plot suspect mulled synagogue attack
WASHINGTON – A Moroccan man who allegedly wanted to conduct a suicide bombing attack on the US Capitol had considered attacking a synagogue, according to authorities. Amine El Khalifi, 29, was arrested near the US Capitol on Friday wearing a vest he believed was full of al Qaida-supplied explosives and charged in an attempted suicide [...]
NJ synagogue bombings suspect seeks to move trial
HACKENSACK, NJ — A teenager charged with attempted murder in the firebombings of two synagogues pleaded not guilty Wednesday, and his attorney said he would likely seek to have a potential trial moved from the county where the attacks took place. Anthony Graziano appeared briefly in state Superior Court in an orange prison jumpsuit and [...]
‘Iran, Hezbollah trying to attack Jews abroad’
Counter-terrorism Bureau releases warning in light of information emerging after recent attacks, urges tourists to be alert. It appears as though Iran and Hezbollah are currently trying to carry out attacks on Israeli and Jewish targets abroad, Israel's Counter-terrorism Bureau warned Friday. The Bureau said it drew these conclusions, "in light of the findings emerging [...]
Dept. of Homeland Security ‘concerned’ over threats from Iran
As federal and local law enforcement plan to boost their communications with Jewish groups in the United States, Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano on Wednesday told a House panel she is "concerned" over potential threats to the U.S. homeland from Iran or its surrogates and it's "a situation that bears watching." Napolitano said her department [...]
High vandals cause gas leak at Victoria synagogue
Victoria police are searching for two hooligans who caused a gas leak early Wednesday morning behind a Jewish synagogue while apparently high on drugs. Officers were called to the temple on Blanshard and Pandora streets at around 5:30 a.m., but the suspects had already fled and a police search turned up no sign of them. [...]
Police advise local agencies on boosting security measures
Law enforcement officials briefed Jewish leaders at a Feb. 9 security seminar held at the South River offices of the Jewish Federation of Greater Middlesex County. Local police chiefs urged Jewish institutions to be more vigilant, to take steps to protect themselves, and to form alliances with law enforcement. Participants at the meeting, held in [...]
Increased Israel-Iran Tension Leads To Heightened Security At Jewish Institutions In NYC
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) — The NYPD has increased security at the Israeli consulate, synagogues and other Jewish cultural institutions throughout the city. The rising tensions between Israel and Iran have prompted the security increase in our area. Heavily armed police and bomb sniffing dogs were posted outside the Israeli consulate on Manhattan’s East Side. CBS [...]
Exclusive: Israel Warns US Jews: Iran Could Strike Here
Israeli facilities in North America — and around the world — are on high alert, according to an internal security document obtained by ABC News that predicted the threat from Iran against Jewish targets will increase. "We predict that the threat on our sites around the world will increase … on both our guarded sites [...]
Details of case against synagogue firebombing suspect aired at bail hearing
HACKENSACK, N.J. — Anthony Graziano heard the screams of horror after he lobbed a Molotov cocktail into the living quarters of a Rutherford, N.J., synagogue where a rabbi lived with his family, a prosecutor said Tuesday, but he ignored the panicked cries and threw more firebombs at the building. He was still enraged over his [...]
Lawyer: Synagogue Firebombing Suspect Has ‘Psychological Issues’
MYFOXNY.COM – Calling their case against Anthony Graziano "rock solid," prosecutors say he confessed. But his lawyer said that confession should be taken with a grain of salt. "He has psychological and emotional issues," said attorney Robert Kalisch, who blamed his client's mental health and video games for his behavior. "When you have emotional, psychiatric, [...]
Prosecutors: Graziano confessed to Rutherford temple firebombing, Paramus arson
Prosecutors say Anthony Graziano confessed to continuing to throw firebombs inside a rabbi’s home despite hearing screaming inside, but his defense attorney said the admission shouldn’t be taken seriously due to his client’s mental health. Graziano, 19, of Lodi, also admitted to the setting fire to a Paramus synagogue in addition to the Rutherford attack, [...]
Torah Burned in Synagogue Fire in Lower Galilee
Jewish congregants in Harish, located in the Lower Galilee and near the Arab city of Umm el-Fahm east of Hadera, arrived at synagogue on Saturday morning to find firefighters trying to put out a blaze that had erupted inside their house of worship. By the time the fire was subdued a Torah scroll, a pair [...]
‘Lone wolves’ more common, dangerous than organized supremacists, experts say
HACKENSACK, N.J. – A loner who broke from obscurity to commit a violent crime – that’s the description provided by law enforcement officials of the 19-year-old Lodi, N.J., man they’ve accused of firebombing a North Jersey synagogue and other violent bias crimes. It’s also a profile that fits the perpetrators of any number of horrific [...]
Police to search N.J. synagogues near home of suspected firebomber
BERGEN COUNTY — Authorities said they are planning to conduct a sweep of synagogues within a 10-mile radius of the home of a suspected firebomber in Bergen County to search for arson materials. The announcement of the investigation came after a teenager charged with attempted murder in the firebombings of two North Jersey synagogues pleaded [...]
