‘Death To The IDF’: St. Louis Jewish Family Targeted In Firebombing Attack

A Jewish family in suburban St. Louis whose son has served in the Israel Defense Forces was targeted by a firebombing earlier this week, with three cars burned and a message, “Death to the IDF,” along with the name of the son, spray-painted on the street.

BREAKING @J_Insider via @marcrod97: "Fire-bombing targeting Jewish family, IDF veteran rocks St. Louis Jewish community"

"Missouri state Rep. George Hruza described the incident as ‘Jew-hatred violence’ and an ‘act of pure evil’"https://t.co/EGNyKHm9Sd

— Josh Kraushaar (@JoshKraushaar) August 6, 2025

Clayton, Missouri, where the family lives, has a significant Jewish population. According to Rabbi Jeffrey Abraham and Stacey Newman, director of the Missouri Alliance Network, the IDF veteran spoke publicly earlier this year about what he had witnessed in Israel and was targeted by a protest. That demonstration included a poster that called for “a powerful demonstration to oppose the Zionist military presence in our community and to demand accountability for those who help commit atrocities abroad,” Jewish Insider reported.

“Everybody’s worried about their kids,” Newman stated, adding that a family whose children had served in the IDF had asked police to monitor their area.

A coalition of Jewish organizations issued the following statement: “We condemn in the strongest terms the attack on members of our community last night. This is more than vandalism; it is a hateful act of intimidation and only the latest example of what happens when antisemitic and anti-Israel rhetoric are normalized,” the organizations said. “We are a resilient community, and we will not be deterred in our quest to uproot antisemitism and hatred, alone and with our partners. Antisemitism is a social ill that must be rejected by all of society.”

“This targeted attack against the Jewish community in St. Louis is horrific and must be met with full condemnation,” Sen. Eric Schmitt (R-MO) wrote on X. “Antisemitism has no place in our society. Everyone involved in this awful attack must be held accountable to the fullest extent of the law.”

This targeted attack against the Jewish community in St. Louis is horrific and must be met with full condemnation.

Antisemitism has no place in our society. Everyone involved in this awful attack must be held accountable to the fullest extent of the law. https://t.co/rzQqtNqWPd

— Senator Eric Schmitt (@SenEricSchmitt) August 6, 2025

Leo Terrell, Chair of the DOJ Task Force to Combat Antisemitism, stated, “I am outraged. Antisemitic violence has no place in America, not in St. Louis and not anywhere. We will pursue every avenue to bring the perpetrators to justice. If you commit antisemitic hate crimes, you will be caught. And you will be held accountable.”

Missouri State Rep. George Hruza, whose father is a Holocaust survivor, declared the firebombing an “act of pure evil,” adding, “Nothing happening in the world at large can justify such a hateful act. This incident is antisemitism, plain and simple. This act did not arise in a vacuum. Since the mass murder, torture, rapes, and hostage-taking by the terrorist group Hamas on Oct. 7, 2023, antisemitic rhetoric has become commonplace in the United States. Tragically, with echoes of 1930s Germany, this rhetoric has fueled incitement to violence.”

“Clayton has dedicated extensive resources and brought in regional law enforcement partners, as well as the FBI, in order to find the individual responsible for this repulsive act,” Clayton Mayor Bridget McAndrew stated.

Cpl. Jenny Schwartz of Clayton police said no arrests have been made, but they have a suspect.