Supporters of Bulgaria’s ultranationalist Vazrazhdane Party demonstrating outside the parliament in Sofia. Photo: Reuters/Hristo Vladev

Antisemitism in Bulgaria is becoming a growing concern in the wake of two acts of vandalism in the capital, Sofia, with the head of the country’s Jewish community describing the episodes as “highly disturbing,” in an interview with a German news outlet.

Earlier this month, a craft beer store was defaced with a six pointed star and the word “Jude” — the German word for “Jew” which the Nazis daubed at the entrances to Jewish-owned stores during the 1930s in a signal to consumers to boycott these outlets, according to the German broadcaster DW.  A swastika was then sprayed on the front of nearby store a few days later.

Speaking to DW, Alexander Oscar — chairman of  “Shalom,” which represents Bulgaria’s small Jewish community numbering between 2-6,000 people — said he had been disappointed by the lack of an official reaction to the “highly disturbing” incidents.

“Any other civilized European country, a country that is a member of the European Union, would have a reaction,” Oscar said.

The vandalized beer store, Cosmic Craft Beers, has been targeted by supporters of the ultranationalist, pro-Russian Vazrazhdane Party, which garnered 14 percent of the vote during April’s general election, making it the third largest party in the Balkan state’s parliament. Earlier this month, supporters of the party clashed with members of staff over their demand that a Bulgarian national flag replace the flag of English soccer club Chelsea on display in its store window. After the incident, the store’s owners put up a sign that read “We don’t serve Vazrazhdane supporters,” which quickly went viral on social media. The shop was subsequently bombarded with bad online reviews and inundated by Vazrazhdane supporters — including a member of parliament — demanding to be served, DW reported.

Vazrazhdane supporters have shown themselves willing to promote antisemitic memes. A recent demonstration in support of Russia’s aggression against Ukraine featured a placard that declared “Zionism = Nazism.” Vazrazhdane MPs have also been implicated; during the COVID-19 pandemic, Vazrazhdane parliamentarian Tsoncho Ganev posted a yellow star on his public Facebook profile and compared public health policies that required people to carry proof of vaccination with the Nazi law that forced Jews to attach to their clothes a yellow star of David with the word “Jude.” Around the same time, his colleague, Elena Guncheva, opined that Bulgarian politicians of Jewish descent were not Bulgarians but “guests on Bulgarian soil.”

The party’s leader — Kostadin Kostadinov, a historian and long-time nationalist agitator — slammed Oscar for his comments, arguing that Vazrazhdane’s supporters deserved the solidarity of the Jewish community because they were allegedly discriminated against. “You should be glad that we Bulgarians are not Nazis like you are. Because if we were, you would not be here,” Kostadinov posted on Facebook in a message to Oscar.

Oscar told DW that he feared the party’s antisemitic rhetoric, which is accompanied by extreme hostility to Bulgaria’s LGBTQ+ community and the Ukrainian refugees there, could escalate into violence.

“Hate speech is much like a flame. The same way a flame can become a huge fire, hate speech can become physical violence,” he said.

Historically, antisemitism has been rare in Bulgaria, with the country basking its reputation for protecting its Jewish population during the Nazi occupation of World War II. However, in neighboring Macedonia, more than 11,000 Jews were deported to concentration camps by the occupying Bulgarian authorities who were allied with Germany.

“We must believe that the situation will get better and we must find a way to demonstrate that we are part of the European family. Europe is based on common values and responsibility. It is important that we, Bulgarians, learn how to take responsibility for our mistakes and for our ancestors’ wrongdoings,” Oscar concluded.