By Donald H. Harrison and Miriam Gershenson
SAN DIEGO — Numerous international cottages of Balboa Park’s House of Pacific Relations were shuttered Saturday, Oct. 26, as police and the FBI investigated a suspicious package that had been hoisted on the flagpole of the House of Israel.
Because the area devoted to “pacific” or “peaceful” relations had to be evacuated, a lawn program of the House of Scotland was moved to a location remote from the main stage, and a trick-or-treat session for children to visit the Halloween displays at the various cottages had to be cancelled.
San Diego Police Lt. Daniel Meyer said after the package outside the House of Israel was X-rayed, it was determined it was not a bomb.
“After a thorough investigation, it was determined this was a hoax type of device and there was no danger to the public,” Meyer said. “Although this was not an actual destructive device, any hoax device which is specifically placed in a location to cause fear is a crime and is taken very seriously. This is an ongoing investigation, and no details will be released at this time regarding this hoax device or any evidence collected.”
Independently, San Diego Jewish World has learned that at least three other suspicious devices, without explosives, were discovered during a subsequent sweep of the area.
House of Israel Vice President Stephanie Nisan said she entered the back door of the cottage before 9 a.m. with an armload of bourekas, the cheese pastry which visitors to the cottage are served for free. When she opened the front door, Nisan said she saw at the top of the flagpole a package which HOI volunteer Ariel Talmor started to take down. Then Nisan noticed that the package appeared to have wires sticking out of it and Tamor jumped back in alarm. On heightened alert because of Israel’s military retaliation against Iran only hours earlier, Nisan immediately called a park ranger who in turn notified police around 9 a.m.
Volunteers for the nearby House of Scotland were getting ready for their lawn program to showcase the culture of Scotland, including its famous bagpipers and mince pies. The main stage was included in the evacuation area that police protectively surrounded with yellow tape. However, the Scots were able to move their performance to a grassy area on the periphery of the International Cottages. A representative of the House of Scotland said when he saw a package similar to that left at the House of Israel, he simply threw it in the garbage. The Scottish spokesman told SDJW that another package had been left at the House of England. A police officer told SDJW a similar package had been left by the House of China.
Nisan said a man’s image appears on the House of Israel’s surveillance video, which was turned over to law enforcement. Lt. Meyer said that Balboa Park has a network of surveillance cameras, and that law enforcement would review the footage to see if a suspect could be identified. Although it was a hoax that physically hurt no one, HOI volunteers felt harassed, and investigators will try to learn the motive of the perpetrator or perpetrators.
“Any time something like this occurs, we take it extremely seriously,” the police spokesman said. He noted that the incident occurred during a time that Israel is at war with its neighbors in Gaza, Lebanon, Yemen, and Iran.
Nisan, the HOI vice president, said, “The House of Israel is not a stranger to threats and aggression. … It is common that when the House is locked up, people bang on the windows and pull down the hostages’ posters” — a reference to pictures and descriptions of the 101 hostages, dead and alive, who are still in the hands of Hamas more than a year after the Oct. 7, 2023, massacre and kidnaping.
She said that she and other volunteers will be back serving bourekas and answering questions about Israel on Sunday, Oct. 27, and are looking forward to seeing the scheduled lawn program featuring the House of Turkiye.
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Donald H. Harrison is publisher and editor of San Diego Jewish World, to which Miriam Gershenson sends freelance articles and photographs.
From Email to the editor:
“The Jewish Federation of San Diego is thankful that the suspicious package incident at the House of Israel in Balboa Park Saturday came to a safe resolution. Many thanks to the combined efforts of the City of San Diego Park Rangers, the San Diego Police Department, and the San Diego Metro Arson Strike Team, for ensuring the safety of all. We sympathize with the park visitors, vendors, and all our friends at the House of Pacific Relations International Cottages who were impacted by this crime. Our Community Security Director Bill Ganley was on scene working as a liaison with law enforcement and supporting the House of Israel volunteers. We will continue to support the San Diego Metro Arson Strike Team as they conduct further investigation. While there are no direct threats to the greater San Diego Jewish community currently, we encourage everyone to continue to practice good situational awareness.”
This is disgusting and disheartening. When our children were young, we took them to the Houses on Sundays all the time. It was a regular thing for us and our children. The fact that things had to be canceled is very distressing for everyone. I would love to hear that they caught the perpetrator. Right now I assume one person has been setting up all these things. But it could be a group.