A Holocaust memorial sculpture at a park in Nottingham was vandalised with ‘Free Palestine’ scratched over the surface.

The message was etched on the central sculpture at the memorial garden in Gedling Country Park, and Gedling Borough Council was made aware of the vandalism on Tuesday morning.

The Parks team responded quickly, removing the markings from the memorial shortly afterwards on the same day.

Council leader John Clarke said he was “deeply disappointed and saddened” by the defacement, adding: “This park holds a special place in my heart and hearts of our community. The damage not only undermines the hard work and dedication of those who maintain the park, but it also affects the enjoyment of our residents.

“We have taken necessary measures to restore and protect the Holocaust memorial to ensure it remains a valuable and important part of the park,” Clarke said.

Karen Pollock CBE, chief executive of the Holocaust Educational Trust, said of the vandalism: “This is a memorial to the Holocaust and not an accessory for anyone’s activism. Defacing this with 'Free Palestine' does not help your cause; it is antisemitism pure and simple.”

National Holocaust Museum director Marc Cave said: “Another day. Another thuggish act of racist vandalism. I'd like to meet whoever did this and ask why they think it's ok to vandalise a historical Jewish memorial in England because of events 3,000 miles away which British Jews have zero control of. Would they graffiti a mosque in Nottingham because of the Islamist massacres in Iraq, Syria, Sudan, Yemen or Nigeria?

“Targeting Jews and Jewish sites in England because of your feelings about Middle East politics is racist,” Cave said. 

Leader of Gedling Borough Council, Councillor John Clarke and Deputy Leader of Gedling Borough Council, Councillor Michael Payne at the opening of the Holocaust Memorial Garden in Gedling Country Park, Nottingham, in March 2023 (Photo: Gedling Borough Council)

The garden, opened to the public in 2023, commemorates the millions of lives lost in the Holocaust, with the corten steel flame sculpture at the centre, representing the eternal flame.

The surrounding circle of cherry trees, designed by Gedling Borough Council, is intended to be a ‘living’ memorial to the victims.