A tombstone in Lithuania honoring a former Polish leader has been vandalized in what appears to be the latest salvo in bitter relations between the two neighboring East European countries.
Police say the grave of Jozef Pilsudksi and
his mother in the Rasos Cemetery in Vilnius, Lithuania’s capital, was
painted on both sides with red Lithuanian symbols.
Pilsudski was a
leader of Poland and regarded as a hero, but he is disliked by
Lithuanians for the forcible annexation of Vilnius in 1920. Only his
heart is buried in the grave.
The vandalism likely stems from
ongoing tensions between the two countries over perceived violations of
the rights of minority Poles in Lithuania.
Lithuanian officials on June 18 strongly condemned the desecration and said the perpetrators would be punished.
