Fourth Haifa synagogue vandalized

HAIFA, Israel, Sept. 30 (UPI) -- A synagogue in the Israeli city of Haifa was vandalized by fire and the destruction of prayer books painted with hate slogans and swastikas.

The Neveh David synagogue was the fourth synagogue to be vandalized in Haifa in recent months, Ynetnews.com reported.

Vandals late Saturday night burned the synagogue's sukkah -- a temporary shelter built for the festival of Succot -- and painted slogans such as "death to religious people" on prayer books, the news agency reported.

"This is another unfortunate incident where vandals deface property using Nazi slogans. Due to the increasing number of similar cases, we are conducting a widespread investigation," said Haifa Police Chief Dudu Ben-Atiya.