Vandals knocked over and smashed 14 headstones at Blackly Jewish Cemetery in Greater Manchester on Wednesday.

Police called the criminal attack “disgusting” with clear racial motivation: “This is a sickening act of anti-Semitism which we are taking very seriously. I believe this was a deliberate and targeted attack and there is no place for such abhorrent behavior in our communities,” said Chief Superintendent Wasim Chaudhry from GMP’s North Manchester Division

“All decent members of the public recognize that a cemetery is supposed to be a resting place for people who have passed away; a place of sanctity and dignity where families can come and pay their respects.”

He added that he “Cannot begin to get into the mind of someone who would commit such an atrocity. I know this will cause a lot of anxiety and distress in the local community and we as police officers and my colleagues at Manchester City Council share that distress.

Chaudhry said that the police “will do everything we can to find out who is responsible and bring the full force of the law down on them.”

Due to the clear racial motivation, the attack has been recorded as a hate crime which means that once the perpetrators are caught, the courts will be able to impose harsher punishments.

Extra patrols have already been put in place in the area.