Over the weekend, vandals spray-painted “Free Gaza” in a few locations on the walls of the property. The cemetery is located at a protest hotspot where there have been large anti-Israel rallies in recent months. A group of pro-Palestinian protesters on Sunday defaced the Los Angeles National Cemetery, spray-painting “Free Gaza” and “intifada” on the entrance to the memorial. Some 90,000 veterans of World War I, World War II, and the Vietnam War, among others, are buried there.
The cemetery is situated at the corner of a protest hotspot where there have been significant demonstrations in response to Israel’s offensive against the Hamas terrorist group in Gaza. During the protest, protesters were heard shouting slogans such as “long live Palestine” and “from the river to the sea, Palestine will be free.” However, Democrat Congressman Brad Sherman criticized the protesters, suggesting that their actions were evidence of their hatred towards Israel and America.
In response to the incident, Veterans Affairs press secretary Terrence Hayes stated that any act of vandalism at VA national cemeteries, where the nation’s heroes are laid to rest, is unacceptable. Immediate steps are being taken to restore the defaced wall at the Los Angeles National Cemetery to its original state.
This incident follows another disruption caused by a group of pro-Palestinian demonstrators at Los Angeles International Airport less than two weeks ago. The rising anti-Jewish prejudice across the U.S. and the world has also been a cause for concern, as highlighted in the “Antisemitism Exposed” newsletter.
Overall, this act of vandalism at the Los Angeles National Cemetery serves as a reminder of the ongoing tensions surrounding the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and the impact it has on communities around the world.
