Holocaust museum symposium crashed by ISIS

Hackers aligned with radical Islamic terror group bring Israeli Holocaust memorial museum’s seminar on Jewish fast day to a halt.

By World Israel News Staff

Hackers claiming to be linked to the radical Islamic group ISIS (Islamic State in Syria) crashed an online symposium this week, held by a Holocaust memorial museum in Israel to mark the anniversary of the destruction of the Jewish temple in Jerusalem.

An online zoom seminar hosted by Yad Vashem to mark the solemn Fast of the 9th of Av (Tisha B’Av), was interrupted Tuesday by hackers claiming to be affiliated with ISIS.

The half-day event, which was attended by more than 1,000 participants, featuring lectures and speakers, including the Chairman of the Yad Vashem Council and Holocaust survivor Rabbi Israel Meir Lau – the former Chief Rabbi of Israel – as well as Rabbi Mordechai Neugroschel.

During the course of the seminar, a message appeared, reading: “Hacked by ISIS Organization of Iraq. Shut your computers down or close the meeting before we attack your computers!”

The message also included images of swastikas, bringing the seminar to an abrupt halt.

The Zoom seminar, designed to commemorate the tragedies of the Jewish people, particularly the Holocaust, was part of the Yad Vashem Holocaust Memorial Museum’s educational efforts.

In a statement released Tuesday, Yad Vashem officials condemned the hacking, calling it a “heinous act.”

“Despite the disruption, Yad Vashem remains steadfast in its commitment to Holocaust remembrance and education, condemning this heinous act that sought to undermine their work.”

“Yad Vashem’s IT teams responded swiftly to the threat, and created a secondary platform allowing the conference to continue as scheduled.”