A heavy police deployment was triggered Sunday morning in Vienna after a hand grenade was discovered directly across from two shuls in the city’s Leopoldstadt district.

The device was found in a building entrance on Tempelgasse, wrapped in a white cloth, by an employee of one of the shuls. Police were immediately notified, and bomb disposal units rushed to the scene. Given the initial uncertainty over whether the grenade was live, authorities imposed a wide security cordon, temporarily sealing off the area until specialists could safely remove the object.

Investigators later confirmed that the device was an F1 hand grenade dating back to the 1970s. According to police, it contained no explosive material and its ignition mechanism was no longer functional. Nevertheless, the discovery of a military-grade object in such a sensitive location raised immediate alarm.

At this stage, police say they have found no evidence linking the placement of the grenade to the shuls or indicating an antisemitic motive.

No threatening note or message was left, and authorities emphasized that there is currently no indication that either synagogue was a direct target. Even so, due to the proximity to Jewish institutions, Austria’s constitutional protection and counterterrorism authorities were brought into the investigation.

Tempelgasse was once home to the Leopoldstädter Tempel, the largest shul in Vienna before it was destroyed during Kristallnacht. Today, the street houses two active shuls as well as a center providing counseling and support to Holocaust survivors and their descendants.

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