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Several Philadelphia-area Jewish Community Centers and schools have evacuated following bomb threats as part of a national wave of threats against JCCs. The threats come just a day after officials discovered more than 500 tombstones had been desecrated at a Jewish cemetery in Northeast Philadelphia.
Jewish Community Centers and schools in several locations in the Philadelphia area have responded to bomb threats and others have been reported in Pennsylvania. Here are the incidents that have been reported publicly so far:
Cherry Hill
The Katz Jewish Community Center in Cherry Hill, N.J., which is also a preschool, tweeted at about 11 a.m. that it had safely evacuated and that police had arrived on scene.
NBC reported that the Jewish Federation of South Jersey in Cherry Hill, located in the same building as the JCC, also received a threat and was evacuated.
Wilmington
NBC10’s Tim Furlong reported Monday morning at 11:45 a.m. that the “all clear was given” at the Wilmington JCC location where a threat was made this morning. The Siegel JCC is located north of Wilmington along Garden of Eden Road in Talleyville, Del.
The location was evacuated around 11 a.m., according to Fox 29:
Wynnewood
A bomb threat was also made at the Perelman Jewish Day School in Wynnewood, which was evacuated.
Harrisburg/ York
PennLive reports that Jewish Community Centers in both Harrisburg and York were evacuated Monday morning to respond to a threat that came in at about 10:30 a.m.
Reports suggest the anti-Semitic bomb threats coming into Pennsylvania and New Jersey locations are part of a broader problem across several states. The FBI and Department of Justice have announced they’re investigating the threats. No actual bombs have been found at any of the locations that have received threats.
Before Monday morning, nearly 50 JCCs in 26 states had received nearly 60 bomb threats since the beginning of the year, according to CNN.
Pa. Gov. Tom Wolf released a statement this morning condemning the acts — which come after a handful of Philadelphia synagogues were also vandalized — and saying he’s requested the support of State Police and the FBI in investigating the matters.
“Any anti-Semitic act or act of intimidation aimed at Jewish institutions and people in Pennsylvania is truly reprehensible and we must find those responsible and hold them accountable,” he said in the statement. “This is not who we are as Americans or Pennsylvanians.”
This article will be updated as the story develops.
