Holocaust memorial stones in Paneriai on the outskirts of Vilnius have been defaced with the "Z" and "V" symbols of Russia's invasion of Ukraine.
Prime Minister Ingrida Šimonytė denounced the incident as a "clear provocation aimed at antagonising the public in Lithuania”.
“In one of the most tragic places in Lithuania's history, where the Nazis and other criminals murdered thousands of innocent people, the provocateurs have splashed yet another symbol of hatred," she said in a statement on Friday.
Paneriai is the largest site of mass killings carried out by the Nazis and their collaborators in Lithuania. Some 50,000 to 70,000 people, mostly Jews from and around Vilnius, were killed there between 1941 and 1944.
The "V" and "Z" symbols are used by the Russian military to mark its equipment and vehicles during the war against Ukraine.
Later on Friday, the Lithuanian Jewish Community condemned “the cynical vandalism”.
“Institutional and public apathy regarding such attacks are unacceptable," the organisation said in a statement, calling to investigate "this disgusting vandalism as quickly as possible”.
"We are convinced that this practice of never finding anyone responsible for anti-Semitic crimes in Lithuania cannot go on," the community said.
”Paneriai, where around 70,000 Jews were murdered, must not become the arena for provocations and political battles. This is a site for the eternal rest of the victims and commemoration," Faina Kukliansky, chair of the Lithuanian Jewish Community, was quoted as saying in the statement.
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