Antisemitic graffiti, which read ‘Israel is a terrorist state’, has been discovered on the Lewisham War Memorial and prompted police to appeal for information.

The vandalism on the memorial, in Lewisham High Street is believed to have been carried out between midday on Remembrance Sunday, when there was a ceremony at the plinth and 9am the following day. It was found later that day.

Incident investigator PC Andrew Dobson has asked: “Anyone [who was] in the area on Sunday evening to overnight to think back as to whether they saw anything that could help us in our enquiries”.

Although it has since been removed by Lewisham Council, it caused upset to residents.

EastLondonLines has approached Lewisham’s Chief Rabbi for comment and is awaiting a reply. 

PC Dobson also deemed the offence “completely unacceptable” and said that: “We know that incidents like this can cause significant concern in our communities, and we will be relentless in targeting those who commit such offences”.

The act of vandalism occurred on the same weekend as Armistice Day clashes between Pro-Palestine protesters and various counter protest groups took place. 

These groups included far-right protesters, joined by EDL founder Tommy Robinson, who aimed to ‘defend’ the Cenotaph. This ended in violence and arrests of those displaying antisemitic placards.

This past weekend, a 20-year-old woman was arrested at a Pro-Palestine march in Lewisham after displaying an antisemitic placard. A 37-year-old man was also arrested for obstructing the arrest.

Anyone with information can call 101 or contact @MetCC on X, quoting ref 3230309/23.