Three Jewish tourists - an American couple and an Israeli - were attacked by a group of ten migrants in Venice in an antisemitic attack, that included setting a Rottweiler on the victims and physical assault.
The incident took place last weekend on Strada Nuova, one of the main streets near the famous Rialto Bridge.
The attackers, Muslim migrants from North Africa, identified the three as Jews by their haredi clothing and surrounded them shouting "Free Palestine."
During the attack, one of the attackers set his unmuzzled rottweiler on the tourists, while another slapped the man and a glass bottle was thrown, shattering and injuring the woman’s ankle.
Police officers who witnessed the incident intervened and prevented further escalation. A 31-year-old Tunisian man was arrested along with two other attackers. He was charged with assault and banned from entering Venice for two years.
Two other attackers were found to be in Italy illegally and were taken into custody pending deportation.
Venice Mayor Luigi Brugnaro strongly condemned the attack, calling it a “serious and unacceptable act.”
The city’s Jewish community issued a statement calling the incident a “vile, cowardly and despicable act,” adding that “such incidents undermine Venice’s tradition of hospitality.”
The incident is the second of its kind in the area in a month. A month ago, another Jewish-American couple was attacked in the same area near the Rialto Bridge, when three men attacked a haredi couple, spat at them and set a dog on them while shouting antisemitic curses.