Israelite Association of Venezuela
Encyclopedia
The Israelite Association of Venezuela, (Spanish
: Asociación Israelita de Venezuela), known as Tiferet Israel, founded in the 1920's by Sephardic Jews, is the oldest surviving Jewish organization in Venezuela. An association of Sephardic Jews, it supports a large synagogue in Caracas and counts about 800 families among its members.
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An armed gang consisting of 15 unidentified men
broke into the synagogue, tied and gagged security guards and occupied the building for several hours. Anti-Semitic and anti-Israeli graffiti was daubed on the walls and the synagogue office and Holy Ark were ransacked. They also called for Jews to be expelled from the country. Venezuela's Foreign Minister Nicolas Maduro
condemned the act as a "criminal act of vandalism". The Information Minister Jesse Chacón
also condemned the attack and denied it had any connection with the government.
Spanish language
Spanish , also known as Castilian , is a Romance language in the Ibero-Romance group that evolved from several languages and dialects in central-northern Iberia around the 9th century and gradually spread with the expansion of the Kingdom of Castile into central and southern Iberia during the...
: Asociación Israelita de Venezuela), known as Tiferet Israel, founded in the 1920's by Sephardic Jews, is the oldest surviving Jewish organization in Venezuela. An association of Sephardic Jews, it supports a large synagogue in Caracas and counts about 800 families among its members.
2009 attack
In late January 2009, the synagogue was badly damaged in a well-organized attack, following an article inciting anti-Semitic violence, which appeared (later removed, and replaced by an apology) on a government website, after the 2008–2009 Israel–Gaza conflict2008–2009 Israel–Gaza conflict
The Gaza War, known as Operation Cast Lead in Israel and as the Gaza Massacre in the Arab world, was a three-week bombing and invasion of the Gaza Strip by Israel, and hundreds of rocket attacks on south of Israel which...
.
An armed gang consisting of 15 unidentified men
broke into the synagogue, tied and gagged security guards and occupied the building for several hours. Anti-Semitic and anti-Israeli graffiti was daubed on the walls and the synagogue office and Holy Ark were ransacked. They also called for Jews to be expelled from the country. Venezuela's Foreign Minister Nicolas Maduro
Nicolás Maduro
Nicolás Maduro Moros is a Venezuelan politician who was appointed foreign minister by President Hugo Chávez on 9 August 2006.- Biography :...
condemned the act as a "criminal act of vandalism". The Information Minister Jesse Chacón
Jesse Chacón
Jesse Alonso Chacón Escamillo was Venezuelan Minister of Interior and Justice from September 2004 to January 2007, under the presidency of Hugo Chávez. He had been a close ally of Chávez since 1990 or earlier...
also condemned the attack and denied it had any connection with the government.