More than 40 graves were vandalized at the Jewish cemetery on the Mount of Olives.
The graves were located in the Ger Hassidic section of the Jerusalem cemetery. Headstones were toppled or smashed, and brass lamps and other items were stolen.
The damage was discovered on Sept. 26, the second day of Rosh Hashanah, when sect members visit the graves of their loved ones.
Among the desecrated graves was that of Rabbi Yitzchok Meir Levine, a haredi Orthodox politician who died in 1971.
Newly installed surveillance cameras in the cemetery were broken by the vandals, according to the International Committee for the Preservation of Har Hazeitim.
Residents of Ma’ale Hazeitim, located across the street from the cemetery, said that masked Arab youths vandalized the cemetery and that police did not intervene for more than an hour.
Over the past few weeks, the cemetery has been vandalized several times as Jerusalem has been plagued by increased violence, according to reports. — jta