September 11, 2014 — Paris, France
AJC France warned today that the dramatic rise in antisemitic incidents this year demands urgent attention and action.
A new report from the Jewish Community Protection Service (SPCJ) and the French Minister of Interior shows a 91 percent increase in antisemitic incidents, 527 in total, from January 1 to July 31, compared with the same period last year when 276 were reported. Many of the incidents were acts of violence, up 126 percent over 2013.
“This is a chilling report,” said Simone Rodan-Benzaquen, Director of AJC France. “2014 could be even worse than the record year of 2012 regarding antisemitic acts.” In May 2012, three children and a teacher were murdered at a Jewish school in Toulouse, and antisemitic incidents rose sharply after that terror attack.
According to the SPCJ, antisemitism peaked this year in January, when controversy erupted over comedian Dieudonné’s remarks regarding Jews and the “Day of Anger,” and again in July during the anti-Israel demonstrations in and around Paris.
“All French citizens of goodwill must stand together to eradicate this cancer, which is not the problem of one minority but a challenge to our society as a whole,” said Rodan-Benzaquen. “We call on the French government and civil society to work together to complete a thorough analysis and to develop concrete initiatives to prevent antisemitism.”
In July, French Prime Minister Manuel Valls said: “The fight against antisemitism is not the problem of Jews, it is the problem of the Republic, of all of France…. It is a national concern.”
The French office of AJC, the global Jewish advocacy organization, works closely with authorities, Jewish community and civil society organizations on combatting antisemitism and other forms of hatred and racism.
