Incredibly, the international media and even the US found a way to blame Israel for the desecration of the synagogues. In Washington, State Department spokesman Sean McCormack said Israel’s decision not to demolish the synagogues "puts the Palestinian Authority into a situation where it may be criticized for whatever it does." Israel decided to leave the synagogues intact, after top rabbis said that destroying them would be a desecration and violation of Jewish Law. Instead of criticizing the Palestinians for destroying holy places, the international broadcast media grilled Israeli spokesmen over the coals for leaving the synagogues intact, suggesting that Israel knew the Palestinians would loot “symbols of the occupation.”