The Simon Wiesenthal Center is calling on local leaders to crack down on anti-Semitic protests after two recent assaults.
In one attack, footage shows a man wearing a Hamas shirt and a face covering on Wilshire Boulevard walk up to a Jewish man and hit him.
In another attack, an Israeli tourist who was at the Santa Monica pier Sunday said a protestor at a pro-Palestinian demonstration overheard him speaking Hebrew and assaulted him. There was a counter-protest happening nearby, but the tourist said he was not part of it.
“This is not just about one group or a few people, you know, having a pro-Hamas demonstration or rally. This is a coordinated game plan,” Rabbi Abraham Cooper, with the Simon Wiesenthal Center, told KNX News’ Emily Valdez.
He claimed anti-Semitism is escalating.
“This is straight criminality with a narrative that's written and endorsed by people who hate America, who want to see Israel eliminated, and Jews disappear,” Cooper said.
Santa Monica police said they’re investigating the attack as a hate crime.
“This kind of hate has no place in Santa Monica,” the Santa Monica Police Department said in a statement.
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The victim of the Santa Monica attack, who didn’t want his name revealed, said he came to the United States to get away from emotional trauma after his cousin was kidnapped on Oct. 7 and later killed.
Anybody with information about the attack is urged to contact SMPD’s Criminal Investigations Division or the Watch Commander at (310) 458-8427.
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