Early Monday morning, the U.S. consulate in Sydney, Australia, was attacked by a suspect wielding a sledgehammer, who smashed windows and smeared anti-Israel graffiti on the doors.
Two red triangles were also spray-painted over the consulate’s coat of arms on the front door – a symbol that has been associated with anti-Israel protesters, according to Reuters.
The ABC report notes that police have described the incident as one of malicious damage and are still investigating the motive, although it is believed to be politically driven.
A couple walks past the boarded windows at the U.S. consulate as police investigate the vandalism in Sydney, Monday, June 10, 2024. A suspect is believed to have smashed nine holes in the reinforced glass windows of the building in North Sydney after 3 a.m., a police statement said. (AP Photo/Rick Rycroft)
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has condemned the act, urging people to engage in “respectful political debate and discourse.”
“People are traumatised by what is going on in the Middle East, particularly those with relatives in either Israel or in the Palestinian occupied territories.”
“Measures such as painting the U.S. Consulate do nothing to advance the cause of those who have committed what is, of course, a crime to damage property.”
A consulate spokesperson told Reuters that operations inside have been unaffected and “Australian Federal Police and New South Wales Police are investigating the incident.”
The same consulate was defaced with graffiti in April, with the words “Freee (sic) Gaza.”
The U.S. Consulate in Melbourne was also vandalized by anti-Israel agitators on May 31.
