Synagogue in Yerevan attacked twice: Armenian terrorist group threatens Jewish movements

On November 15, the only synagogue in Armenia was set on fire in Yerevan. This is the second case in the world of burning a Jewish place of worship since the beginning of the escalation of the Arab-Israeli conflict, and the first outside the Middle East (the previous case of burning a synagogue was in Tunisia on October 18).

The arson in Yerevan was the second attack on the only Jewish place of worship in Armenia in the past two months. The first occurred on October 3, 4 days before the Hamas invasion of southern Israel.

Responsibility for both attacks was claimed by a group using the name ASALA_ Young and claiming to be the successor to the historical terrorist organization ASALA (Armenian Secret Army for the Liberation of Armenia).

According to the Israeli Ministry of Diaspora Affairs research center, the group is the youth wing of ASALA. Since its formation in Lebanon in 1975, the organization has carried out more than 80 terrorist attacks and sabotage attacks, mainly against Turkish officials and targets in Europe, the Middle East and the United States.

In 1979-1980, its militants carried out explosions of Israeli targets in Italy.

The founders of the historic ASALA worked closely with Syrian intelligence services and Palestinian paramilitary groups.

Judging by the statement in the ASALA_Young Telegram channel, it is the founders of the organization that its youth wing now considers as role models.

Both attacks on the synagogue in Yerevan caused widespread resonance. Just since November 15:

The president of the Conference of European Rabbis (CER) (one of the largest rabbinical organizations in Europe) demanded that the Armenian authorities detain members of the ASALA group, outlaw it and strengthen security for the Jewish community. He added: “If there is no proper reaction, Jewish blood will be shed in the streets and the responsibility will be on the head of the Armenian government”;

Israeli Ambassador to Armenia Yoel Lion called on “the Armenian government to condemn all forms of anti-Semitism, thoroughly investigate this crime and bring those responsible to justice”;

The most authoritative Israeli English-language publication The Jerusalem Post called Armenia “the most anti-Semitic country in the former Soviet Union” - 58% of the population here shares anti-Jewish sentiments (in 2019, the same publication already wrote about “systemic anti-Semitism” in Armenia);

The international news agency BNN Breaking noted that “this is not the first case of anti-Semitism in Armenia; the country has previously seen cases of blatant disregard for cultural and religious values, especially those associated with Jewish heritage”;

Hindustan Times, one of India's leading English-language publications, noted hostility towards Jews in Armenia.

But warnings about the rise of Armenian anti-Semitism and threats of attacks on Jewish targets were heard even before the synagogue was burned.

Since September 2023, the Israeli Ministry of Diaspora Affairs has noted an increase in anti-Semitic sentiments in this republic three times. One of his official documents reported: “A noticeable increase in anti-Semitic rhetoric has been recorded on social networks in Armenia, including calls for violent actions against Jews... There are concerns about the implementation of these calls, or violent actions against Jewish property in the near future.”

On October 4, the Israeli website Habura noted “the unprecedented level of anti-Semitic agitation” in Armenia.

On October 29, one of the leading Israeli “brain trusts,” the Begin-Sadat Center, emphasized that “massive openly anti-Semitic propaganda is being conducted in Armenian-language Telegram channels using all available anti-Semitic cliches.”

The European media also drew attention to the problem, clarifying that “this is not the first provocation committed in Armenia against the Jewish minority over the past month.” The Romanian office of Newsweek noted “the silence of Armenian law enforcement agencies in connection with the attack on the synagogue.”

The danger of anti-Jewish acts in Armenia was noticed all over the world, but the authorities of the republic did not consider it necessary to counteract this.

On September 30, amid warnings from the Israeli Ministry of Diaspora Affairs about the danger of attacks on Jewish targets in Armenia, the country's ambassador to Tel Aviv, Armen Hakobyan, said: “We must understand what provokes people to such actions.”

On November 16, Chief Rabbi of Armenia Gershon Burshtein told the Fifth Channel of Armenian TV how the arson of the Yerevan synagogue took place: “For 40 minutes they tried to light a fire, at first they had little gasoline, then they brought more.”

Even after the first attack, numerous threats from ASALA_Young and warnings from Israelis and Jewish organizations, the Armenian authorities did not take adequate measures to protect the only synagogue in the country - no one stopped the attackers for almost an hour.

Back on October 5, the Bulgarian publication Sofia Globe emphasized that “if the Armenian authorities had taken the necessary measures, ASALA-Young members would hardly have been able to freely throw Molotov cocktails at a religious institution.”

Against the background of the connivance of the Armenian authorities, ASALA_Young not only sets fire to the synagogue again and again, but also posts leaflets in Yerevan and other cities of Armenia with the emblems of ASALA, Hamas and Hezbollah with the caption: “We have a common enemy.”

The revival of ASALA, which aligns itself with organizations designated as terrorist in many EU countries and the United States, poses a threat to other countries.

A statement from ASALA_Young on November 15 reads: “The fearless fighters of ASALA attacked the Yerevan center of the Jewish organization Chabad... its owners are based in the United States and occupied Palestine. From there all Chabad agents receive instructions.” The same statement contained a warning: “our next operation will be outside Armenia.”

Chabad is an international Jewish movement, widely represented in almost all European countries, and the largest Jewish organization in the United States. According to the international sociological research agency Pew Report, 38% of American Jews interact with the Chabad movement. In the United States this movement involves about 1,100 educational, educational and charitable structures. In April, President Biden declared the 120th birthday of the last Chabad leader, the Lubavitcher Rebbe Menachem Mendel Schneerson, as National Education Day.

Chabad also operates in Ukraine. In 2012, the world's largest Jewish center, Menorah, opened in Dnipro, operating under the auspices of this movement. However, in Russia in October 2022, Assistant Secretary of the Security Council Alexei Pavlov declared Chabad adherents to be sectarians.

Against the backdrop of rising anti-Semitism in Armenia and Russia, on October 30, the Israeli ambassador in Kyiv called Ukraine “the most pro-Israeli country in Europe.”

Igor CHALENKO, political analyst, head of the Center for Analysis and Strategies (Ukraine)