Signs of vandalism were discovered in nine barracks of the Auschwitz death camp on Tuesday, the Auschwitz-Birkenau State Museum reported.
The spray-painted messages included slogans denying the Holocaust in English and German, as well as two references to the Old Testament which are often used by anti-Semites.
Statement concerning the vandalism that took place on October 5 at the Auschwitz II-Birkenau site. pic.twitter.com/bsNepIRCcL
— Auschwitz Memorial (@AuschwitzMuseum)
The museum staff issued a statement saying the nasty graffiti “is above all, an outrageous attack on the symbol of one of the greatest tragedies in human history and an extremely painful blow to the memory of all the victims of the German Nazi Auschwitz-Birkenau camp.” They vowed to remove the offensive statements “as soon as the police have compiled all the necessary documentation.”
The staff said that security measures at the Auschwitz-Birkenau State Museum are constantly being improved, despite the steep cuts in the museum’s budget during the coronavirus pandemic. They added that securing the site by enclosing it completely would be impossible as long as the ownership of land that lies between the camp fence and a new road is not given to the museum.
Police are investigating the vandalism and analyzing available video surveillance material.
Finally, one must be seriously anti-Semitic to deny the Holocaust in the very heart of the systematic annihilation complex where millions of Jews were destroyed. Governments must invest many more millions in re-educating those individuals.