A screenshot of NYPD security footage showing a milk crate being thrown at the windows of a synagogue in the Williamsburg neighborhood of Brooklyn, NY. Photo: Screenshot.

JNS.org – Police are searching for those behind the vandalism of a synagogue during Rosh Hashanah in the Williamsburg neighborhood of Brooklyn, NY.

A group of people were caught on surveillance video throwing a milk crate at a synagogue on Monday afternoon, and then returning moments later to throw another one, in addition to a metal mailbox, at the building’s windows, subsequently breaking them.

New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio called the incident a “shocking act of hate,” and said, “We WILL find the perpetrators and hold them responsible. If you have any information, share it with the NYPD. Officers are protecting religious institutions during High Holy Days, and we’ll keep our Jewish community safe.”

New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo has ordered the New York State Hate Crimes Task Force to help the NYPD investigate the “disturbing” case.

He said in a statement, “I am disgusted and enraged by yet another antisemitic act of vandalism, the desecration of a synagogue in Williamsburg over Rosh Hashanah, one of the holiest days in the Jewish calendar. It is simply unconscionable.”

Cuomo said, “this incident unfortunately underscores the need for State Police to increase their patrols around houses of worship during the Jewish high holidays this year. In New York, we have no tolerance for hate, and I continue to join with our Jewish community and work to ensure the New Year is one of peace, protection and well-being.”