Rabbi Shmuley Boteach, an American Jewish rabbi, was physically attacked at an anti-Israel pro-Palestine rally in Vienna.
By Rachel Avraham
Rabbi Shmuley Boteach recently wrote an article in Arutz Sheva, claiming: “Last night, in Vienna — Hitler’s city — before Shabbat, I was assaulted by a mob of Islamist thugs at an anti-Israel “Free Palestine” rally. I was shoved, kicked, and manhandled — just for wearing my kippah and tzitzit. Debbie was terrified and deeply traumatized amid the dangerous attack. We were lucky to escape with our lives.”
In video documentation that was published on Youtube, one can see Rabbi Shmuley Boteach, an American Jewish rabbi, attending an anti-Israel pro-Palestine rally in Vienna, wearing visibly Jewish clothing and speaking in English about his support for Israel. One of the protesters approaches him and says, “Free Palestine.” He then stated, “Free Palestine of Hamas.”
The documentation then shows him being surrounded by anti-Israel protesters, who start to fight with him. Everything escalates after one of the anti-Israel protesters decides to kick the rabbi. The police then get involved and try to arrest the rabbi but not the anti-Israel protesters.
According to Rabbi Boteach, “For two hours, Debbie and I were taken to a Vienna police station on Shabbat. After many threats to arrest me, they finally looked at the many videos provided by several horrified American tourists – including a hero tourist California cop – and stopped treating me as the criminal.”
Rabbi Boteach pondered in Arutz Sheva, “My attackers? Were they free to walk away? Was anyone arrested? Warned? Interrogated? I have no idea, even though HUNDREDS of people watched me being physically assaulted for simply being visibly Jewish.”
According to Rabbi Boteach, “The police demanded my ID and treated me not as a victim but as an assailant. It took the testimony of the American police officer who saw the entire attack and stayed, along with our two wives and me, for hours to help us — that the Austrian police admitted I was the victim. I was terrified, humiliated, degraded, and dehumanized.”
Rabbi Boteach concluded, “This is Vienna, where Hitler was inspired by virulent Jew-hater Mayor Karl Lueger — whose statue still stands in 2025, a fact which is absolutely disgusting. This is Vienna, where in March 1938, 1 million Austrians cheered Hitler’s Anschluss speech from the balcony of the Hofburg Palace. Last night, I felt the echo of that hate. Europe is not safe for Jews. Not when mobs attack us in the streets and police threaten to jail the victims.”
The European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights did an antisemitism survey, where they found: “73 % of the respondents in Austria consider antisemitism to be a very big or a fairly big problem in their country (average in the 12 surveyed countries: 85 %) . 75 % of the respondents in Austria consider antisemitism has increased over the past 5 years (average in the 12 surveyed countries: 89 %). 82 % of the respondents in Austria consider racism to be a very big or a fairly big problem in their country (average in the 12 surveyed countries: 84 %).”
The survey found: “Most survey respondents in Austria say they are regularly exposed to negative statements about Jews. A large majority of respondents in Austria (78 %) identify the internet as the most common forum for negative statements (average in the 12 surveyed countries: 80 %). The most frequent comment made by non-Jewish people in Austria is according to the respondents the statement: Israelis behave “like Nazis” towards the Palestinians (50 %).”
According to the survey, “Nearly one third of the respondents have considered emigrating (31 %) in the past five years because they did not feel safe as a Jew in Austria (average in the 12 surveyed countries: 38 %) . A majority of respondents (75 %) believe that the Austrian government’s efforts to combat antisemitism are not effective.”
Photo from shiezoli: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/1RfkKNvpV6A
