An 18-year-old Palestinian youth was arrested after three Molotov cocktails were hurled at the Bergische synagogue in Wuppertal

Security has been stepped up at Jewish schools and meeting places across Germany after a synagogue was firebombed in the latest in a string of anti-Semitic attacks following Israel’s military assault on Gaza.

An 18-year-old Palestinian youth was arrested after three Molotov cocktails were hurled at the Bergische synagogue in Wuppertal in western Germany in a failed attempt to set it on fire.

The symbolism of the target has not been lost on the Jewish community, which rebuilt the synagogue after it was burnt to the ground on Kristallnacht, the Nazi pogrom against Jews in November 1938.

Following Jewish outrage at anti-Semitic chanting at pro-Palestinian rallies in several cities, further incidents across Germany reported yesterday included death threats received by a rabbi in Frankfurt