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JewishHistoryעברית

Yerevan synagogue arson

Date
15 November 2023Hebrew date: 2nd of Kislev, 5784
Location
Mordechai Navi Jewish Religious Center, YerevanArmenia
Then part of
Republic of Armenia
Perpetrators
  • Unidentified attacker (foreign national, per Armenian investigators) (Individual)
Killed (estimate)
0[1]No one was injured. Rima Varzhapetyan told AFP, as reported by the Times of Israel, that the synagogue was not seriously damaged and that no one was in the building.
Worldwide

0% of the worldwide Jewish population (c. 2023)[4]

Category
Terror attack
Confidence
DisputedThe Times of Israel and Armenpress agree on the date, address and arson of the doors. Armenpress, quoting the Investigative Committee, identifies the suspect as a foreign national who left Armenia. The Jerusalem Post attributes a claim of responsibility to ASALA, which the official statement does not confirm.

Summary

On 15 November 2023 an unidentified person set fire to the entrance doors of the Mordechai Navi Jewish Religious Center at 23 Nar-Dos Street in Yerevan. Armenian police told AFP, as reported by the Times of Israel, that they received a call that day and opened an investigation; community president Rima Varzhapetyan said no one was inside and that damage was not serious. Armenia's Investigative Committee stated that the attacker was not an Armenian citizen, left the country after filming the act, and that a case was opened for arson and for damaging cultural property in order to incite racial, national, ethnic or religious hatred. The Jerusalem Post reported that the Armenian Secret Army for the Liberation of Armenia claimed responsibility; the Investigative Committee statement fetched here does not name that group.

Sources

  1. Armenia opens probe into arson attack on synagogue. Times of Israel / AFP (2023)
  2. Foreign national suspected in arson attack on Yerevan synagogue – Investigative Committee. Armenpress (2023)
  3. Danielle Greyman-Kennard, Synagogue in Armenia set alight in latest attack on Jewish diaspora. Jerusalem Post (2023)

Jewish population (estimates)

  • Worldwide: 15,691,200[4]c. 2023Core Jewish population on 1 January 2023, as published in DellaPergola's 2023 Year Book chapter.

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