Swastikas spray-painted outside entrance to Temple Israel synagogue in Minneapolis

Two spray-painted swastikas were found outside Minneapolis’ Temple Israel, the largest synagogue in Minnesota, on Monday morning.

The symbols were found spray-painted in red on a pillar and a door on the temple’s Emerson Avenue S. entrance, according to Rabbi Marcia Zimmerman. A report has been filed with police.

“It is heartbreaking to see such a hateful image directly underneath the words emblazoned above our doors, words that have guided us for generations: ‘My house shall be a house of prayer for all peoples,’” Zimmerman said. “Temple has always been a sacred space, a welcoming place to all who enter with a spirit of community and peace.”

Minneapolis police confirmed surveillance cameras captured the incident and released several images Monday afternoon. The suspect wore a white hoodie with the hood up, a black face covering, black jogger pants and tan boots. They left in a silver Honda Civic and spent less than two minutes at the temple. No arrests have been made.

The vandalism comes at a time of increased antisemitism and uncertainty in the Jewish community about its safety. In an April poll from the Jewish Federations of North America, more than half of Jewish Americans reported being at least somewhat concerned for their personal safety.

In an interview, Zimmerman said the synagogue has fielded an increased number of disturbing and threatening phone calls since the Oct. 7, 2023, attack on Israel by Islamist militant group Hamas. In one year following the attack, the Anti-Defamation League reported a 200% increase in antisemitic incidents compared to the same period one year before.

“It’s disturbing,” Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O’Hara said in an interview, noting he drove by the synagogue Monday morning to see the graffiti himself. “Obviously when you talk about the war in the Middle East, people look at the name ‘Temple Israel’ and assume it has something to do with the country itself – Israel. That’s not what it means.”

O’Hara condemned the attack and lamented the national uptick in threats against both Jewish and Muslim institutions. On Saturday, O’Hara spoke to the Abubakar As-Sadique Islamic Center in south Minneapolis, which had reported a social media video threatening to shoot up the mosque – later determined to be a hoax initiated by someone out of town. But the threat unsettled congregants and led to the cancellation of school and religious activities at the site.

“When they’re targeting these houses of worship – whether it’s a masjid, a synagogue, a church – it really is attacking the larger community,” O’Hara said.

None of the threats against Temple Israel have been deemed credible, and Zimmerman said Monday’s vandalism will not disrupt any programming in the coming days and weeks. The Jewish holiday of Hanukkah will be celebrated from Dec. 25 to Jan. 2.

“We will continue to be here,” she said. “We can’t allow hate to define us.”

Zimmerman said Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz and Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison have reached out with support after hearing of the vandalism. Frey and Minnesota Secretary of State Simon are members of the synagogue and released statements on X.

“When hate is embraced or tolerated, it is emboldened,” Frey said. “I’ve seen antisemitism increase over the last year, yet too few have spoken out against it, opting for the safety of silence. No matter one’s ethnicity or race, when any group is targeted, it’s on all of us to condemn it.”

Added Simon: “This is more than an act of vandalism. It’s an attack on the Jewish community. If the goal was intimidation, it will fail. Temple Israel and all synagogues will continue to welcome people, Jews and non-Jews alike, who come in friendship.”

Temple Israel, at 2323 Fremont Av. S., opened in 1928 at a time of heightened antisemitism in Minneapolis, Zimmerman said. The five entrance doors that run along Emerson Avenue represent the five books of the Torah.

Their position on Emerson Avenue, which can be seen from busy Hennepin Avenue, was done intentionally to show a “message of strength and pride and being Jewish, as well as welcoming people of different faiths.”

“We take great pride in that,” she said.

Liz Sawyer contributed to this story.