Chicago police issue community alert after anti-Semitic stickers, graffiti found in Hyde Park
Between June 23 and June 30, stickers or graffiti with anti-Semitic phrases were left on various properties — including a mailbox, stop sign, lockers and an emergency bell — in the South Side neighborhood, police said.
The criminal damages to property took place on the 5100 block of South University Avenue, 1200 and 1300 block of East 53rd Street, 1300 block of East 54th Street and 1500 block of east 55th Street, police said.
The alert comes after swastikas were painted on several buildings and one building was tagged a second time with a pro-immigration enforcement statement in Little Village over the weekend.
In June, a woman defaced a Pilsen mural at 16th Street and Ashland Avenue and was accused of attacking another woman who tried to stop her. That mural depicted solidarity between a Mexican and a Palestinian man.
tkenny@chicagotribune.com
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Chicago Tribune
2 hours ago
- Chicago Tribune
Afternoon Briefing: Another drowning reported at busy Illinois Beach State Park
Good afternoon, Chicago. Recovery operations continued today for the body of a 14-year-old boy who drowned at Illinois Beach State Park at around 4 p.m. Tuesday, according to Beach Park Fire Chief Tom Stahl. It's at least the second drowning this summer at the park, where first responders have complained more equipment and manpower are needed to handle emergencies in the wake of beach-related improvements the state has made in recent years. Here's what else is happening today. And remember, for the latest breaking news in Chicago, visit and sign up to get our alerts on all your devices. Subscribe to more newsletters | Asking Eric | Horoscopes | Puzzles & Games | Today in History The mayor's team teased plans this week to take another swing at raising property taxes to close the city's more than $1 billion budget gap, despite an aldermanic revolt last year and continued resistance to such a hike. Read more here. More top news stories: Cuts outlined in President Donald Trump's proposed 2026 budget mean some groups stand to lose federal funds that support medical services like testing and HIV treatment, as well as nonmedical patient supports such as housing and food subsidies. Read more here. More top business stories: The Bears held their first practice of training camp this morning, a shorter session that served as a reminder that football is back across the NFL. After the practice plus interviews at Halas Hall, here's a snapshot of the camp proceedings. Read more here. More top sports stories: Alyssa Allgood started singing when she was in the sixth grade and she is singing still, as she was last weekend at Jazz Showcase, that South Loop treasure. She and her band — Greg Ward (alto sax), Ryan Cohan (piano), Ethan Philion (bass) and Jon Deitemyer (drums) — spread their music over four nights. Read more here. More top Eat. Watch. Do. stories: Friends and relatives of four University of Idaho students murdered in their rental home by Bryan Kohberger delivered powerful statements of love, anguish and condemnation as his sentencing hearing began today. Read more here. More top stories from around the world
Miami Herald
4 hours ago
- Miami Herald
‘You're dead.' Man faces prison over threats to Palestinian group in DC, feds say
A caller with a number linked to a TracFone traced by the FBI kept leaving violent voicemails for a Palestinian rights organization in Washington D.C., according to court filings, warning its employees were being watched, tracked and that they were going to die. 'Don't think we're not watching you,' said a man, later identified as Kevin Brent Buchanan, in the first message left for the advocacy group on Oct. 31, 2023, an affidavit filed with a criminal complaint says. 'We know who you are, who your families are….You are the enemy….You're gonna die,' Buchanan warned, according to the affidavit. Four more menacing messages were received by the Palestinian organization in the following days, the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Columbia said in a July 22 news release. After the Justice Department asked the FBI to investigate the threats, the investigation led to Buchanan, 63, of Tooele, Utah, who now faces up to five years in prison, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office. Buchanan pleaded guilty on July 21 in D.C. to transmitting in interstate commerce a communication containing a threat to injure the person of another, federal prosecutors said. He retained criminal defense attorney Barry Coburn, who declined McClatchy News' request for comment July 23. In a statement of facts filed the day of Buchanan's plea hearing, prosecutors wrote that 'the United States does not allege that Buchanan necessarily intended to carry out this threat.' Buchanan, when asked about his intentions by U.S. District Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly on July 21, confirmed he wanted to cause harm, WUSA reported. 'That's correct, your honor,' Buchanan said, according to the TV station. 'I was intending to carry out a threat.' Buchanan left five voicemails threatening the Palestinian rights group's staff between Oct. 31, 2023 and Nov. 2, 2023, prosecutors said, a couple weeks after Hamas' Oct. 7, 2023 attack against Israel that led to the ongoing war in Gaza, according to The Associated Press. In one of two messages Buchanan left on Nov. 1, 2023, according to court documents, he said 'we're documenting you, your families, and everything. . . . You're not Americans. You're traitors.' 'Palestinians are going to die. By the hundreds of thousands,' he is accused of adding. Afterward, the affidavit says Buchanan phoned again and left a voice message, calling the organization's staff members 'terrorists' and warning: 'you're dead people walking.' 'You're gonna die,' Buchanan's message continued, according to the filing. 'And I'm gonna love it. So are your families…' The next day Buchanan left two additional messages, including one in which the affidavit says he said: 'I hope your wives and children get raped and beheaded.' In his final message, Buchanan said, according to the affidavit, that: 'I hope every Muslim in the United States (expletive) croaks. I hope there's a battle between Christianity and Islam because…because Jews and Christians will kick their (expletive).' The FBI learned the calls came from a TracFone with Verizon as the carrier, the affidavit says. After receiving 'GPS 'ping' data' from Verizon, the FBI tracked the phone to Utah, then learned it was purchased by Buchanan at a Walmart, according to the filing. In pleading guilty to threatening the organization in D.C., prosecutors said Buchanan 'admitted' these were targeted threats 'because its staff and members are Palestinian, and because the organization advocates on behalf of Palestinians.' His sentencing hearing is set for Nov. 18, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office. In addition to prison time, he is also facing up to a $250,000 fine. According to The Associated Press' July 23 report, militants led by Hamas killed about 1,200 people in southern Israel and kidnapped 251 hostages nearly two years ago on Oct. 7. Since then, the AP, citing Gaza's Health Ministry data, reports 'more than 59,000 Palestinians have been killed during the war,' with the majority of deaths being women and children. With Israel's offensive in Gaza continuing, Palestinians are facing 'mass starvation,' according to a July 23 report from Amnesty International, which says attacks have been occurring at food distribution sites in Gaza, endangering aid workers in addition to Palestinians. UN High Commissioner for Refugees spokesperson Thameen Al-Kheetan said in a July 15 news release that 'As of 13 July, we have recorded 875 people killed in Gaza while trying to get food.'
CNN
6 hours ago
- CNN
Ukraine sees first major anti-government protests since start of war, as Zelensky moves to weaken anti-corruption agencies
Ukraine has seen the first major anti-government protests since the start of Russia's full-scale invasion over three years ago, as a move by President Volodymyr Zelensky to curb anti-corruption agencies sparked fury across the nation. Defiant crowds gathered in the capital Kyiv on Tuesday, as well as Lviv in the west, with smaller groups gathering in Dnipro in the east and Odesa in the south, after Ukraine's Parliament — the Verkhovna Rada — approved a bill that grants oversight of two key anti-corruption agencies to the prosecutor general, a politically appointed figure. Critics say the move will hamper the two bodies, the National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine (NABU) and the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor's Office (SAPO), and take Ukraine further away from its dream of joining the European Union. The EU has made it clear to Kyiv that it must implement strong anti-graft measures if it wants to become a member. The Biden administration urged the Ukrainian government to do more to root out corruption in 2023. Ukraine has long been seen as one of the most corrupt countries in Europe. Allegations of corruption have been wielded against some of the country's top officials, including several close allies of Zelensky – such as former Deputy Prime Minister Oleksiy Chernyshov. The bill was fast-tracked through the parliament and signed into law by Zelensky late Tuesday. The Ukrainian leader said in his nightly address that both organizations would 'continue to work' but defending his move as a necessary step to rid the two agencies of 'Russian influence.' This came after Ukrainian authorities raided one of the bodies on Monday and arrested two of its employees 'on suspicion of working for Russian special services.' He also criticized the previous system as leading to cases being stalled for years. But opponents say the two agencies will no longer be able to operate independently because the new law gives the prosecutor general power to influence investigations and even shut cases down. Criticism came from all corners of society. Former Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba slammed the move in a statement, calling Tuesday a 'bad day for Ukraine.' The move didn't go unnoticed on the frontlines, where the military is struggling to hold back Russian forces. Referring to corruption that the agencies were working to root out, Yegor Firsov, chief sergeant of a drone strike platoon, said on X that 'this is not a question of NABU or SAP. This is a question of barbarism,' adding that 'nothing is more demoralizing than seeing that while you are sitting in a trench, someone is robbing the country for which your brothers are dying.' Responding to the criticism on Wednesday, Zelensky said 'everyone would work solely in a constructive manner to resolve existing issues, deliver greater justice, and truly protect the interests of Ukrainian society.' The two agencies affected by the law, said in a joint statement on Wednesday that they were 'deprived of guarantees that previously enabled them to effectively carry out their tasks and functions in combating high-level corruption.' They called on the government to reverse the law. Crucially for Kyiv, the criticism is coming from both inside and outside of Ukraine, including from some of the country's key Western allies. The Ukrainian branch of Transparency International, a leading independent nonprofit group that monitors corruption around the world, previously urged Zelensky to veto the new law. It said that the new law destroys Ukraine's independent anti-corruption institutions, which it said were 'one of the greatest achievements' since pro-European protests sparked the Revolution of Dignity in 2014 that ousted pro-Russian President Viktor Yanukovych. The two agencies were both founded after the revolution, specifically to tackle corruption among Ukraine's top political echelon. NABU is in charge of investigation corruption allegations, passing them to SAPO to prosecute once it has gathered evidence. Transparency International also said the new law would undermine the trust of Ukraine's international partners, as a myriad of global organizations stepped in to criticize the law. Marta Kos, European Union's top official in charge of the process of admitting new member states, said she was 'seriously concerned' over the law. 'The dismantling of key safeguards protecting NABU's independence is a serious step back. Independent bodies like NABU & SAPO, are essential for (the) EU path. Rule of Law remains in the very center of EU accession negotiations,' Kos said on X. Meanwhile, the American Chamber of Commerce said the move was disappointing. It said the law 'threatens the independence of Ukraine's anti-corruption infrastructure and undermines trust in the country's anti-corruption efforts.' The Agency for Legislative Initiatives (ALI), a leading Ukrainian think tank that focuses on democracy building and scrutinizes the work of the country's parliament, said in a statement that the new law is a '180-degree turn' in European integration efforts. ALI said the law gives the Ukrainian prosecutor general 'nearly unlimited powers,' including the authority to transfer cases to different prosecutors and effectively block any investigations by pushing through administrative obstacles. The prosecutors working for SAPO have gone through a rigorous selection process that included international expert advisors, ALI said, adding they have expertise that is unparalleled in other parts of the law enforcement system. ALI also said that while the law purports to be a response to the war and the current extraordinary circumstances, it envisions the oversight of the top prosecutor to continue for three years after Ukraine's martial law is lifted. Fighting rampant government corruption was Zelensky's main campaign pledge ahead of the 2019 election. A former comedian who played Ukraine's president on a hit TV show, Zelensky had zero political experience before his victory – but he tapped into voters' dismay on the issue. During the war, Zelensky has fired a slew of senior Ukrainian officials over corruption allegations, and his government has instigated anti-corruption measures, including the National Anti-Corruption Strategy. International organizations, including the EU, the United Nations and the Group of 7 have previously praised Zelensky's government for its anti-corruption efforts. But those same organizations are now denouncing the new law – while its critics in Ukraine say Zelensky's campaign platform to rid the country of corruption was simply empty promises. CNN's Victoria Butenko, Daria Tarasova-Markina and Max Saltman contributed reporting.
