Images of female students used to advertise Zefat Academic College across Safed were vandalized on Wednesday, with the images of the women crudely erased with black markers, the institute confirmed.
The billboards had only been installed a day before the vandalism, and the advertisements featuring male pupils were left untouched.
The students of the college were pictured side-by-side in, what the institute saidm was a message conveying equality, access to higher education, and empowerment for all segments of society.
“This is not only an attack on women but also on the idea of equal opportunity. Zefat Academic College places great importance on making higher education accessible to all populations, and especially on encouraging women to study, develop, and make an impact," said Meital Toker, Director of Marketing at Zefat Academic College.
“This act of vandalism will not deter us—we will continue to promote values of equality, inclusion, and female empowerment.”
The college assured that it intends to speak with the relevant authorities about the incident and restore the billboards to their original state.
Vandalizing images of women
The issue of pictures of women being vandalized has been a longstanding issue in Israel. The Jerusalem Post previously reported that many advertising companies had veered away from using female models, fearful that the campaign they were investing in would only be destroyed.
Last year, the vandalism of posters featuring the faces of female hostages in Modi’in drew significant outrage. The posters of male hostages were left untouched, despite being directly placed next to their fellow female captives.
In 2023, a campaign poster for then-Ashdod mayoral candidate Helen Gelber was vandalized sparking national outrage.
In a Facebook post complaining about the incident, Gelber wrote, "This isn't in Bnei Brak, it's here in Ashdod. A shocking and threatening act of defacement of my face on a campaign poster on Menachem Begin Road…”