Defacement of Italian mural honoring Holocaust survivors is an act of antisemitism: 'Walls may be damaged, but history cannot be'

In a "demented act" of vandalism, a mural of Holocaust survivors in Italy has been defaced. The Milanese mural by artist aleXsandro Palombo features the faces and Stars of David of Liliana Segre and Sami Modiano, who were portrayed in striped camp uniforms and bulletproof vests as Auschwitz-Birkenau survivors. The artwork, unveiled on September 28, aimed to emphasize Holocaust remembrance as antisemitism rises in Europe. Senators have vowed to ban pro-Hamas migrants from entering the US with a bipartisan push.

After a pro-Palestinian rally in Milan, some demonstrators defaced a mural of Italian senator Segre, calling her a "Zionist agent." In response, Palombo painted over the defacement with a message condemning the rhetoric.

The vandalism has sparked criticism across Italy. Mario Venezia, head of Italy's Holocaust memorial museum, described the act as "insane" and "destructive," while Italian Democratic Party official Piero Fassino condemned it as a "shameful attack on the memory of the Holocaust."

Palombo frequently tackles hot-button issues in his murals, including the Holocaust and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Last year, he created a mural showing Anne Frank next to a young Palestinian girl. In 2023, his mural portraying Vlada Patapov, the "girl in red" who survived a Hamas attack during the Nova festival, was defaced almost immediately after being completed. Palombo believes that the antisemitic fury unleashed by Hamas is overwhelming Jews in every part of the world and that it undermines freedom, security, and the future of us all.

Terrorism is the complete rejection of humanity and has nothing to do with resistance. It uses people with the intention to divide and lead them into the depths of its evil, into an endless vortex of destruction. There can be no peace until terrorism is eliminated; legitimizing it means condemning the entire human race to death.

The Shoah Museum in Rome condemned vandalism, stating that such acts harm art and undermine the value of Memory, which is essential for creating a conscious and just society.