A tourist from the United States was apprehended by law enforcement for reportedly vandalizing statues within the Israel Museum in Jerusalem, an act seemingly motivated by religious sensitivities. According to a police statement, officers were summoned to the scene on Thursday evening after the visitor deliberately damaged various sculptures in the museum.
Photographs released by the authorities depict two statues knocked off their pedestals and shattered into multiple pieces in the museum’s archaeology wing.
The damaged artworks include the head of Athena from the 2nd century CE, discovered in 1978 near Beit She’an in Tel Naharon, and a statue of a griffin holding the wheel of fate, representing the Roman god Nemesis. The griffin statue, dating back to 210-211 CE, was unearthed in the northern Negev in 1957.
The Israel Museum clarified that only two ancient Roman statues from the 2nd century CE in the archaeology wing had been destroyed.
Police disclosed that a museum security guard detained the 40-year-old man before law enforcement arrived and took him into custody. The museum also provided police with a photograph of a stick believed to have been carried by the individual within the museum and potentially used for vandalizing the sculptures.
The suspect was interrogated by the police, who intend to request that he be denied bail.
Preliminary assessments by the police indicate that the man destroyed the statues because he believed they were “against the Torah,” according to their statement.
The damaged sculptures have been transferred to the museum’s conservation laboratory for professional restoration. The museum described the incident as “severe” and “concerning” but assured that it would not affect its operating hours and activities.
The museum did not specify whether the displayed statues were originals or replicas. Sukkot is a peak tourist season in Israel, with many visitors, particularly from North America, traveling to the country during this time.
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