A Holocaust mural commemorating the deportation of Jews from Thessaloniki to concentration camps has been defaced for the second time, according to the Central Board of Jewish Communities in Greece.
“[Antisemitic vandals] roam freely and stain undisturbed any attempt to preserve Holocaust memory in Thessaloniki,” the organization said.
The mural commemorates the deportation of the port city’s Jews to Auschwitz-Birkenau. It was created in 2021 by the "Vardaris Neighborhood Group" with the help of local residents, and is affixed to the outside wall of the new Thessaloniki railway station.
The mural was defaced in blue paint with swastikas, fascist symbols and antisemitic statements. It was also crossed out.
According to the Central Board, the incident was the second time in the last few days that a Jewish memorial was desecrated. Earlier in the week, the monument dedicated to the old Jewish cemetery of Thessaloniki at the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki was vandalized.
“We state once more: tolerating antisemitism means tolerating neo-Nazism and the abolition of the values of a democratic society, of a lawful state,” the Central Board said. “Because antisemitism begins with actions against Jews but it never stops to the Jews.”
“Statements of condemnation are not enough,” they added. “It is unacceptable that those responsible for the vandalism of memory remain at large. Once again we call upon the authorities to take all necessary measures in order to arrest the perpetrators and bring them to justice.”