French leaders condemn terror attack outside synagogue, police officer wounded

A car exploded on Saturday in an alleged terror attack outside of the Beth Yaacov synagogue in France, according to French officials. One police officer was wounded in the attack.

French President Emmanuel Macron condemned the antisemitic attack and vowed to find those responsible.

"Everything is being done to find the perpetrator of this terrorist act and to protect places of worship," Macron wrote on 𝕏. The president also expressed support for the French Jewish community.

"Thoughts are with the members of the synagogue... and all the Jews in our country," Macron stated. "The fight against antisemitism is an ongoing battle, one that the entire nation must undertake together."

French Prime Minister Gabriel Attal echoed similar sentiments.

"This is an antisemitic attack. Once more, our Jewish compatriots are targeted," Attal rote in a post on 𝕏. "We won't give up. In the face of antisemitism, in the face of violence, we will never allow ourselves to be intimidated," he vowed.

French Interior Minister Gérald Darmanin affirmed his "full support" for the Jewish community.

"An attempted arson attack, clearly criminal, hit the synagogue of La Grande Motte this morning. I want to assure our Jewish fellow citizens and the municipality of my full support and say that at the request of the President of the Republic @EmmanuelMacron, all means are being mobilized to find the perpetrator," Darmanin stated.

The identity of the perpetrator is officially unknown, however, the local news outlet Le Parisien posted an image captured by surveillance footage showing the suspect, who was reportedly wearing a Palestinian Authority flag around his legs.

France is home to Europe’s largest Jewish community, numbering around half a million people. it is also home to Europe’s largest Muslim community, numbering between 6 and 7 million people. The majority of French Jews and Muslims are either immigrants or descendants of North African immigrants who settled in France in the 1960s up until today.

French society has been plagued by various levels of antisemitism for years. Thousands of French Jews have immigrated to moved to Israel and other nations in response.

Antisemitism in France has surged since the unprecedented Oct. 7 Hamas invasion and terror attack in southern Israel, where 1,200 men, women and children were killed and another 250 kidnapped by Hamas terrorists into Gaza.

In early August, the French Jewish Community Protection Services (SPJC) warned that Jew hatred in French society has become a “new routine.”

The SPJC assessed that a whopping 60% of the antisemitic incidents in France included violence and verbal assaults. In addition, 40% of the antisemitic incidents targeted Jewish institutions and businesses. Despite the pessimistic outlook, SPJC vowed to secure a Jewish future in France.

Many French Jews are pessimistic about the future of France. In July, Chief Rabbi Moshe Sebbag of the Grande Synagogue of Paris argued that there was no future for Jews in France due to the high levels of antisemitism.

“It is clear today that there is no future for Jews in France,” he said “I tell everyone who is young to go to Israel or a more secure country.”