Another Round Of Threats Target Jewish Community Centers

Jewish Community Centers in the country have once again been targeted by threats.

The JCC in Milwaukee was closed Tuesday due to an emailed threat, the center wrote on Twitter. It had returned to scheduled operations as of 9 a.m. central time. Another threat was called in to the JCC of Rochester, New York. Staff were temporarily evacuated from the center before it could reopen. On the West Coast, the JCC in Portland was targeted by a bomb threat.

Police in Davie, Florida, were on the scene of a bomb threat at the local JCC but have since given the all-clear. In Chicago, a Jewish Day School has been evacuated for a bomb threat.

According to local media reports, another JCC in upstate New York, located in DeWitt, has been placed on lockdown.

New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo has already called for an investigation into the threats that have been directed at Jewish centers in his state. Cuomo recently traveled to Israel where he denounced the rash of anti-Semitic acts taking place in America.

“JCC Association of North America confirms a developing situation in which several JCCs have received either emailed or phoned-in bomb threats overnight and this morning," the JCC of North America said in a statement. "We will follow up with more information as it becomes available.”

The Anti Defamation League said in a statement that four of its offices received threats on Tuesday.

At least 100 threats have been called in to 81 JCC locations in North America in 2017. On Friday, federal authorities announced the arrest of a disgraced former journalist, who has been tied to at least eight of the threats.

The spate of bomb threats has led lawmakers to call for action against anti-Semitic and hateful acts. On Tuesday, all 100 senators signed on to a bipartisan plea to ask that the Trump administration offer help to Jewish centers facing a rise in threats. The letter, an advance copy of which was obtained by POLITICO, is addressed to Attorney General Jeff Sessions, Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly, and FBI Director James Comey.

Patch will update this breaking news story.

Image Credit: Seth Wenig/Associated Press