A rise in antisemitic harassment and crime is pushing more and more Jews in France to consider moving to Israel, the leader of France’s largest Jewish organization told allisraelnews.com.
“Wherever they live, I guess the Jewish population is feeling insecure today in the French environment,” Robert Ejnes, head of CRIF, the umbrella organization for France’s Jewish community, said. “I don’t know a family that is not speaking about [leaving France] now.”
France has the largest Jewish community in Europe, with around half a million people. It’s also home to an estimated six to seven million Muslims, or about 10% of the population. As in other Western countries, people with Muslim immigrant backgrounds have been involved in a disproportionate number of antisemitic incidents, especially the more serious or high-profile ones.
Antisemitism has increased sharply since Hamas’ October 7, 2023, terrorist attack on Israel, Ejnes said, and President Macron’s recent decision to recognize a Palestinian state has contributed to legitimizing antisemitic and anti-Jewish sentiments. While Macron has previously been supportive of the Jewish community, today, “we believe he’s promoting antisemitism by doing what he’s doing,” Ejnes stated.
But with a long history in France, many Jews are still hesitant to leave, he said. “Many know the resilience of the community after all the bad events that ever happened to us in France, especially in recent times: the Dreyfus Affair, or the Vichy government, or the Shoah, and Jews have still continued to live and belong to the French environment.”
