Sunday, August 25, 2024

French Synagogue Rocked By Suspected Terror Blast


French Synagogue Rocked By Suspected Terror Blast
Stefan J. Bos


French President Emmanuel Macron said Saturday there had been another terrorist attack against the Jewish community that left one police officer injured following an explosion outside a synagogue.

Macron stressed that the synagogue attack in La Grande-Motte, a Mediterranean resort east of Montpellier, was a “terrorist act.”

He pledged that “everything is being done to find [its] perpetrator.” Macron acknowledged that “The fight against antisemitism is a constant battle.”

Macron made the comments on social media platform X as French police were ordered to step up security around Jewish places of worship, schools, and centers across the country following the synagogue blast. 

Two cars, one believed to have contained a bottle of gas, parked in front of the Beth Yaacov synagogue. Sources said they were set alight outside at about 8.30 am on Saturday.

Two doors at the building were also set alight, according to police.

Police officers, who opened an inquiry into “attempted murder linked to a terrorist organization,” are trying to identify an individual captured on security cameras walking away from the vehicles minutes before the explosion.

Officials said France’s specialist anti-terrorism prosecutor was investigating the attack.

Saturday’s attack came shortly after the Islamic State group, also known as ISIS, claimed a stabbing at a festival in neighboring Germany that killed three and injured eight others. 

The Islamic group said the attack was carried out by one of its members “in revenge for Muslims in Palestine and everywhere.”

France, like other countries in Europe, has seen a surge in antisemitic incidents following the Hamas attacks on Israel on October 7 that prompted Israel’s war against the group in Gaza.

Police officers, who opened an inquiry into “attempted murder linked to a terrorist organization,” are trying to identify an individual captured on security cameras walking away from the vehicles minutes before the explosion

Saturday’s attack came shortly after the Islamic State group, also known as ISIS, claimed a stabbing at a festival in neighboring Germany that killed three and injured eight others.

The Islamic group said the attack was carried out by one of its members “in revenge for Muslims in Palestine and everywhere.”

No comments:

Post a Comment