'Free Palestine' Appears Outside Brooklyn Synagogue

PARK SLOPE, NY — The words "Free Palestine" were found scrawled outside a prominent Park Slope synagogue Friday morning.

On a display case on the side of the building, photos show the words "free Palestine" written in small letters with a heart.

A larger set of words painted in front of the building was still harder to make out in photos, but the NYPD told Patch it read "Jews for Palestinian Resistance."

The words were being cleaned and power-washed away Friday morning after police arrived at the synagogue on Eighth Avenue and Garfield Place, said local Cory Zapatka.

The NYPD's hate crime task force was investigating, police said. Police said the words were discovered around 6:45 a.m. Friday. Police said there were "anti-Israel" stickers left at the synagogue, but would not clarify what that meant.

Zapatka said the neighborhood is comprised largely of young families. Young children arriving for daycare at the synagogue asked their parents what the writing was, and many responded art, Zapatka said.

The synagogue, Congregation Beth Elohim, is known locally for its progressive attitude, Zapatka said.

Congregation Beth Elohim's Rabbi Rachel Timoner has been celebrated for her progressive teachings, especially on the recent violence in Israel and Palestine.

In a discussion on Oct. 14, Timoner expressed horror over Hamas's attack on Oct. 7, but also urged people to "plead, pray, lobby" that Israel not indiscriminately bomb in Gaza and act with pure vengeance.

"This has been the worst week for the Jewish people in our lifetimes, except for those that are old enough to have been alive at the time of the Holocaust," Timoner said.

Later, Timoner continued: "Killing thousands of Palestinian civilians will not bring back the Israeli civilians who are so bitterly and excruciatingly mourned."

Because of inaccurate information provided by an NYPD spokesperson, this story originally had incorrectly worded the phrase written in front of the synagogue. The story was edited at 4 p.m. to reflect the correct phrase.