A Jewish man was stabbed multiple times outside a kosher pizzeria in Italy, in what the World Jewish Congress said is believed to have been a targeted attack.
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The man Identified as Natan Graff was walking in the Lorenteggio district around 8;15pm, when a man with a covered face came up from behind him and stabbed him at least nine to ten times including on his face and his back.
The attacker fled the scene.
The motive for the attack is unclear but police are investigating whether it was a hate crime. The Simon Wiesenthal Centre wrote to Mr Alfano demanding armed protection at Jewish schools and synagogues.
Several Israelis have been stabbed by Palestinians in Israel and the occupied West Bank in recent weeks.
In a statement, they said they hoped the attack was an “isolated episode” but that security around Jewish sites would be reinforced. “We are close to the man and his family”.
City councillor Ruggero Gabbai, a Jewish community member, told La Repubblica newspaper: “We fear this is something similar to what happened in Paris with “lone wolfs” emulating what is happening in the middle east”.
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Graff had reportedly arrived in Milan with his daughter to visit his father-in-law, Hetzkia Levi, a local rabbi of Afghan descent. A few residents in the area also said they heard the attacker shout “I’ll kill you” twice in Italian, La Repubblica reported.
