NYPD Steps Up Patrols Near Brooklyn Synagogues Amid Surge of Antisemitic Assaults

The New York City Police Department (NYPD) is stepping up patrols near synagogues in Brooklyn amid a surge of antisemitic assaults taking place in the borough’s Williamsburg neighborhood, Commissioner Keechant Sewell said in a press conference on Monday, The New York Jewish Week reported.

“In the wake of these senseless attacks, we deployed round-the-clock house of worship cars to routinely visit synagogues,” Sewell said, speaking at the site on Lynch Street where an Orthodox Jewish man was slapped by a passerby the last week. “We increased patrols to visit sensitive locations.”

In addition to the Aug. 22 slapping incident, two Jewish men were sprayed in their faces with a fire extinguisher in separate incidents the previous day in Williamsburg.

“It is believed these victims were targeted because they are Jewish,” Sewell noted. “No one deserves to be the victim of such senseless hateful violence.”

Watch Commissioner Sewell’s press conference here:

Watch as Police Commissioner Sewell and NYPD executives provide a case update. https://t.co/bLzaQWyLg4

— NYPD NEWS (@NYPDnews) August 29, 2022

According to NYPD data, there was a 114% jump in antisemitic hate crimes in New York City in July 2022, compared to July 2021.