A statue of Anne Frank, known for her diary recounting her experiences hiding from the Nazis during World War II, has been vandalized with pro-Palestinian graffiti. Images circulating on X show the base of the statue spray-painted with the slogan ‘Free Gaza,’ while the girl’s hands were painted the same blood-red color. Amsterdam police have launched an investigation into the defacement, which likely occurred overnight between Saturday and Sunday, but no suspects have been identified yet.
Anne Frank, who tragically died in a Nazi concentration camp at the age of 16 in 1945, remains a symbol of the Dutch Jewish community. Her diary has become a powerful testament to the horrors of the Holocaust, which tragically wiped out approximately three-quarters of the Netherlands’ 140,000 Jewish population during the Nazi occupation. The house in Amsterdam where the Frank family found refuge for two years before being captured by the Nazis in 1944 – leading to their subsequent deportation to the Bergen-Belsen concentration camp – has been transformed into a museum dedicated to preserving Anne’s story.
This act of vandalism marks the second incident in less than a month targeting the statue, one of the most recognizable symbols of Holocaust victims worldwide, according to television station AT5 and confirmed by police. On July 9th, the statue, located in a southern Amsterdam park, was previously vandalized, prompting the municipality to implement enhanced security measures including video surveillance cameras and nighttime lighting.
Anti-Semitic incidents have surged globally since the outbreak of the conflict between Israel and Palestinian militants in the Gaza Strip, ignited by Hamas’s attacks on October 7th. These attacks resulted in the deaths of 1,197 individuals, primarily civilians, according to an AFP tally based on Israeli official figures. Additionally, militants seized 251 hostages, of whom 111 remain in captivity in Gaza. Israel’s military asserts that 39 of those held in the Palestinian territory are deceased. Israel’s counteroffensive against Hamas has tragically claimed the lives of at least 39,580 individuals in Gaza, as reported by the territory’s health ministry, which refrains from providing a breakdown of civilian and militant casualties.
