Harakat Ashab al-Yamin al-Islamia (HAYI) on Wednesday claimed responsibility for recent attacks against a German Jewish-owned restaurant and a North Macedonian synagogue and Jewish community center, according to videos published on Iranian regime-affiliated Telegram channels.
HAYI said in its video that it had ostensibly attempted an arson attack against the Skopje Jewish center last Sunday morning because it was a “symbol of the historical and cultural identity of Jews of this region,” and had a “deep connection with the Zionist regime.”
“This center is not just a local place of worship, but a link in the chain of identity and mutual support between the Jewish community and the Zionist regime,” read a statement in the video. “Because of the crimes of the Zionist regime, no Jew anywhere will be safe.”
Culprits seen climbing the fence before dousing building with lighter fluid
Surveillance footage published last Sunday by Israeli Ambassador to North Macedonia Vivian Aisen showed two men climbing a fence before dousing a building with an accelerant.
After they retreated to the other side of the fence, the suspects hurled a firebomb that set the accelerant alight. A door and courtyard were charred by flames, according to photographs shared by the Jewish community with The Jerusalem Post.
Also on Wednesday, HAYI, allegedly an Iranian regime front group, claimed that it was responsible for explosions that damaged the Eclipse Grillbar last Friday.
The video attributed to HAYI said that the attack occurred after midnight when the restaurant was closed, but it threatened that the attack “could have happened during the day and the Zionists would have been killed.”
“Never approach Zionist establishments,” read a statement in the video.
According to JTA, the explosions caused minimal damage. Police are investigating while considering antisemitism as a possible motive since the restaurant’s owners are Jewish.
Bayerische Rundfunk (BR) reported that the Munich Public Prosecutor’s Office was investigating the video but would not comment in detail on the matter.
On Sunday, the Metropolitan police said that it was investigating claims by Ashab al-Yamin that it was responsible for London’s Sunday morning arson against the Kenton United Synagogue, the attack on the former Jewish Future’s building in Hendon on Friday, and an arson attempt against the Finchley Reform Synagogue on Wednesday.