Three Bulgarian citizens were arrested as suspects in the defacement of a Paris Holocaust memorial with red painted hands in May, the Bulgarian National Security Agency (DANS) and Interior Ministry announced on Friday.
Two citizens were arrested by the DANS on Thursday, and a third was detained in another European Union state. The three were allegedly affiliated with far-right radical groups. The investigation is still not over as the agency is attempting to fully explore the actions, perpetrators, and possible accomplices.
A July 19 arrest warrant for the perpetrators sought them for participation with a criminal group, and destruction of property motivated by ethnic animus, according to the DANS statement.
The Wall of the Righteous, which memorializes 3,900 French citizens who risked their lives to save Jews during the Holocaust, was defaced by hooded individuals overnight on May 13. Red hands were documented by the Holocaust Memorial Foundation and activist group Nous Vivrons as having been painted on the wall and on buildings throughout the neighborhood.
Macron stands against antisemitism
The incident drew national outrage, with French President Emmanuel Macron attacking the vandals for undermining the memory of French heroes and the victims of the Holocaust.
“The Republic, as always, will remain inflexible in the face of odious antisemitism,” said Macron.
The symbol of red hands has become associated with pro-Palestinian and pro-Hamas activists who have used the symbol to accuse Israelis and their institutions of guilt in spilling Palestinian blood.