Hate graffiti and swastikas painted on a Haredi Orthodox school in Be’er Sheva is the result of “incitement against the Haredi Orthodox,” the Shas Party said Wednesday after the vandalism at the entrance to the school was discovered.
“The public atmosphere against the haredi public and Torah students has gotten out of control and actually encourages harassment of the haredi Orthodox public,” Shas party leader Aryeh Deri wrote on his Facebook page.
The Haredi community has been under fire over the drafting of yeshiva students into the army. A Knesset committee is working to prepare a universal draft law for its second and third reading in the full parliament that would drastically reduce the number of deferments for yeshiva students.
However, Be’er Sheva synagogues and schools, including those that are not Haredi, have frequently been the targets of anti-Semites. Several thousand non-Jews of Russian origin live in the city.
JTA contributed to this report.