Police say vandals painted antisemitic slogans and insignia in tunnels near Idaho's Anne Frank Human Rights Memorial on Friday, as millions of Jews around the United States are in the midst of celebrating Hanukkah.

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The Boise Police Department announced on Twitter that they are currently in the search for whoever is responsible for the vandalism along the Greenbelt in Boise.

"We recognize the significance of this being the last Saturday of Hanukkah and we are reaching out to Jewish leaders in our community to let them know we will not stand for such hateful and abhorrent behavior in our city," Boise Police Department Chief Ryan Lee said on Twitter.

According to KIVI, the graffiti included antisemitic comments directed towards Jews, hate messages directed at minority groups, and symbols such as swastikas.

Thankfully, the graffiti was swiftly covered up by Boise Parks and Recreation staff, reported authorities.

"The antisemitic messages contained in the graffiti found along the Greenbelt put a literal and figurative stain on our community. This will not be tolerated," Boise Mayor Lauren McLean asserted in a statement published on Facebook.

"Hate speech is reprehensible. It is not who we are as a city and is not part of our shared values. I invite all good people of Boise to stand with me, as I stand with our Jewish neighbors, to rebuke this hate."

According to the memorial's website, the Anne Frank Human Rights Memorial in Idaho is the sole Anne Frank memorial in the United States. The educational park has an amphitheater, a quotations wall, a garden, and a classroom, as well as a bronze monument of Anne Frank.

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"When you have the government telling you that your business is essential or non-essential – yours is non-essential and someone else's is essential – we have a problem there," she continued before saying:  "I mean, that's no different than Nazi Germany where you had government telling people either you were an essential worker or a non-essential worker, and non-essential workers got put on a train. You can't take away people's lives and property without compensation, and that's exactly what [the Idaho Governor] would be doing." 

The lawmaker went on to attack the governor himself, saying, "they are already calling [Idaho Governor Bradley Jay Little], Little Hitler – Gov. Little Hitler."

She concluded by saying that she hoped people would start saying, "enough of this," and put pressure on the governor. "That's what I would hope for," she added.

Currently, COVID-19 has claimed more than 45,000 lives in the US. Restrictions put in place appear to be slowing the rate of new cases. 

Following her comments, the American Jewish Committee took her to task and criticized her for belittling the atrocities of the Nazis. "Scott's comparison of stay-at-home orders during the pandemic to Nazi death camps is unfathomably offensive and an unforgivable affront to victims of the Holocaust. She should apologize immediately," the AJC tweeted.

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