Odessa, Ukraine - Man Assaulted in Bias Crime

Odessa, Ukraine - A Jewish man Chaim Weitzman, 24, was beaten by a group of young men in the Ukrainian city of Odessa.

According to some witnesses, Weitzman was hit several times on his head after one of the youths he was passing shouted, “I don’t like yids!” Weitzman, who received minor injuries and is recuperating at home, was wearing at the time traditional Orthodox Jewish garb.
When he first reported the incident to the local police they initially refused to accept his report, but later opened an investigation.

Local Jewish leaders said the incident was not an isolated case in Odessa; over the past year there have been several anti-Semitic attacks on Jewish individuals and institutions. Chief rabbi of Odessa and southern Ukraine, Rabbi Avraham Wolf said, “These incidents are possible because of lack of proper reaction from authorities and police on previous attacks - vandalism, graffiti, threats.”