Western Wall in Jerusalem painted with anti-war message ‘There is a holocaust in Gaza’

The Western Wall in Jerusalem on Monday was vandalised with graffiti condemning Israel's ongoing war in Gaza, authorities said, triggering widespread condemnation from religious leaders and politicians.

"There is a holocaust in Gaza" was graffiti in Hebrew on the southern portion of the wall, the holiest site where Jews are allowed to pray, located in the Israeli-annexed Old City of Jerusalem.

A similar message was also scrawled on the wall of the Great Synagogue, elsewhere in the city.

Israeli police said a 27-year-old suspect had been arrested and would appear in court later on Monday, having requested an extension for his detention, without disclosing his identity.

The incident sparked immediate outrage in Israel, with the Western Wall's Rabbi Shmuel Rabinovitch calling it a "desecration".

"A holy place is not a place to express protests... The police must investigate this action, track down the criminals responsible for the desecration and bring them to justice," Rabinovitch said in a statement.

The office in charge of the site's management said that the graffiti was scrubbed off in the morning.

National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir, who oversees Israel's law enforcement agencies, vowed that the police would act "with lightning speed".

Far-right Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich also weighed in, saying the perpetrators "forgot what it means to be Jewish".

Sharp condemnation also came from the opposition.

Former defence minister Benny Gantz, now an opposition leader, called it "a crime against the entire Jewish people".

The Western Wall lies in the heart of the Old City of Jerusalem, which Israeli forces captured during the 1967 Arab-Israeli war.

On the other hand, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni expressed "deep concern" on Monday over Israel's plan to take control of Gaza City, in a telephone call with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas.

Meloni shared "her deep concern over recent Israeli decisions, which appear to be leading to further military escalation", and slammed the humanitarian situation in the Strip as "unjustifiable and unacceptable", her office said.

Israel has said its military would "take control" of Gaza City in a plan approved by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's security cabinet that sparked a wave of global criticism.

Abbas's Palestinian National Authority governs areas in the West Bank but not in Gaza, controlled its enemy Hamas.

In the call Meloni "reiterated the need to immediately end hostilities in order to continue providing humanitarian assistance to a desperate civilian population".

She also agreed with Abbas that "Hamas must release all hostages and accept that it will have no future in governing the Strip", her office said.

Netanyahu on Sunday said the military would conquer the remaining quarter or so of the Gaza territory not yet controlled by Israeli troops -- including much of Gaza City and Al-Mawasi, an Israeli-designated safe zone where huge numbers of Palestinians have sought refuge.

Agencies