Police are investigating a troubling act of vandalism on the Upper East Side as a possible hate crime after a swastika was carved into the hood of a parked car this week, an incident authorities believe may be connected to an Israeli flag visible inside the vehicle.
The car’s owner, a 56-year-old woman, found the antisemitic marking Friday morning, three days after she had parked the vehicle on East 85th Street near First Avenue, police said.
An Israeli flag was displayed inside the car, a detail that may have played a role in the attack, the Daily News reported.
The vandalism drew swift condemnation from public officials, including Mayor Zohran Mamdani.
“The swastika carved into a car on the Upper East Side is a despicable act of antisemitism,” Mamdani wrote on X. “It is a hateful attack of intimidation on our Jewish neighbors and on the values that make our city what it is.
“To every Jewish New Yorker: your city stands with you,” the mayor added. “We will confront acts of antisemitism wherever they appear with urgency and without exception.”
City Council Speaker Julie Menin also denounced the incident.
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“This horrific, antisemitic symbol continues to appear across our city,” Menin wrote in a separate post on X.
“Sadly, this isn’t the first time it’s been discovered in my district.” Menin added that the council is in communication with the NYPD, which is currently investigating the incident, adding that Jewish New Yorkers “refuse to let antisemitism be normalized.”
The incident comes amid a troubling trend of rising hate crimes in the city.
In May alone, hate crimes skyrocketed by 74.4 % – from 39 to 68 – compared to the same month last year, according to the NYPD.
More than 60% of the attacks last month were classified as anti-Jewish.
Some community critics have expressed frustration with the current administration’s approach to these issues.
Moshe Spern, president of the United Jewish Teachers, told The Post, “There isn’t any shock in the Jewish community that antisemitic hate crimes have risen against our community by 70%.”
Spern further criticized the mayor’s rhetoric and administration’s policies as failing to adequately address rising intolerance.
The NYPD’s Hate Crime Unit is investigating the incident.
