A plaque commemorating three young resistance fighters during World War II has been the target of an anti-Semitic act at the Bois de la Cambre, an urban public park in Brussels,
A swastika was sprayed on the plaque bearing the pictures of the three men, Youra Livchitz, Robert Maistriau and Jean Franklemon, who on April 19, 1943, succeeded in stopping the 20th train convoy bound for the Auschwitz extermination camp from the Dossin barracks in Mechelen. Thanks to them, several Jewish people were able to escape from the wagon and avoid the grim fate they were destined for.
Last year, the commemorative plaque was unveiled in the Bois de la Cambre to pay tribute to this act of bravery.
The act was condemned by CCOJB, the Coordinating Committee of Belgian Jewish Organizations (CCOJB).
“This is a major desecration,” deplored Yves Oschinsky, president of the CCOJB. “These are heroes of Belgium, since the attack on the 20th convoy saved dozens of Jews. What’s more, one of the three young resistance fighters, Youra Livchitz, was himself Jewish.”
According to Yves Oschinsky, this act is “first and foremost an attack on Belgium, of course, but it’s also an attack on resistance. And ultimately, it’s part of the explosion of anti-Semitic madness that has been raging in Belgium for the past few months.’’
Anti-Semitic acts have surged dramatically in the country, particularly since the Hamas terrorist attack in Israel on October 7.