Ethiopian synagogue in Israel receives threatening letter with swastikas

“Consider yourselves warned, Ethiopians. If you harm a police officer and his family – we, his friends and relatives, will take revenge against you without mercy,” stated the letter.

By World Israel News Staff

Police say they have launched an investigation into an incident over the weekend in which an anonymous threatening letter was sent to a synagogue serving the Ethiopian community in the southern coastal city of Ashkelon.

The letter states: “Consider yourselves warned, Ethiopians. If you harm a police officer and his family – we, his friends and relatives, will take revenge against you without mercy.”

Swastikas are drawn in the four corners of the paper on which the letter is written.

“You Ethiopians will not scare us. We will wait and see,” the letter continues.

An incident in which an Ethiopian-Israeli teen, Solomon Tekah, was fatally shot by a police officer on June 30 in a Haifa suburb has drawn protests organized by members of the Israeli Ethiopian community.

An internal police investigation has shown that the policeman had fired at the ground, but that the bullet had ricocheted, causing Tekah’s death. There have also been previous complaints of police brutality against Israelis of Ethiopian origin.

Some of the demonstrations have caused massive traffic jams. At times, the protests became violent.

Solomon Tekah