Today I was speaking to someone who would love to do some traveling. She mentioned a number of places she'd like to got to in Europe.
"But I'd never go to France," she added.
Close to fifty years ago my friends and I tried to boycott France because of its government policy, especially after the the
delivery of the Cherbourg boats was cancelled.
The Boats of Cherbourg was an Israeli military operation which took place on 24 December 1969, and involved the escape of five unarmed Sa'ar 3 class boats from the French port of Cherbourg. The boats had been paid for by the Israeli government but had not been delivered due to the French arms embargo in 1969.
Today the reason that that many Jews won't go there is the
Muslim violence and the antisemitism in the streets.
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| A protester wearing a kaffiyeh and wrapped in a Palestinian flag raises his fist on July 13, 2014 in Paris. (AFP Photo / Kenzo Tribouillard) |
A synagogue near the Bastille was under police guard on Monday after more than 100 youths chanting "Israel murderer" tried to storm the building following a march demanding an end to Israeli air strikes on Gaza.
Several thousand protesters took part in Sunday's march, some wearing facepaint in the colours of the Palestinian flag and carrying banners saying: "Stop killing children."
As the demonstration broke up, a large group headed to the Abravanel synagogue where about 150 people had gathered for a memorial service for three Israeli teenagers found murdered in the West Bank.
Neighbours said the protesters had picked up chairs from a cafe nearby and tried to break through a police barrier outside the synagogue, where worshippers remained trapped for several hours.
Six police and two members of the Jewish community were injured, and six protesters were arrested. (The Guardian)
Violence is simmering beneath the surface and periodically, more and more frequently escaping.
I wouldn't want to live there. Believe me, it's safer and more pleasant in Israel even during this war.
3 comments:
Does anyone remember Ilan Halimi - brutally tortured for weeks and then murdered in Paris in 2006 for being a Jew. I was sure that that would be a turning point for French Jewry but no. The Toulouse attack. The Belgian attack (not in France, but just next door and carried out by a French national). Also not. If you've ever noticed, statistics about French aliya are always percentages based on previous years. So even if aliya is up by 50% all it means is an increase of another 1000 or so Jews. There is definitely an exodus of French Jews, which even the mainstream French media has picked up on, but given the size of the French Jewish community (core population just under half a million, law of return population 700,000), it's more of a trickle than a flood.
Surely now this fire-bomb attack on a synagogue full of Jews, reminiscent of Nazi Germany, will make its mark. The mob was shouting "death to the Jews". This was not a demonstration but a pogrom. Who goes to a demonstration carrying molotov cocktail?
Hi Batya, It's been a couple of years since I visited you at your home, and you helped find me a tour guide for Shiloh (your neighbor). The shul that was attacked is where I pray all the time, and I was at the ceremony, but had to leave early and so was fortunately not one of those stuck inside. The ambiance has gotten much worse the last 6 months here in Paris. I think Anonymous has a good point, but this event has really shaken people up, as even my wife, who uptil now has been resisting making aliyah, as she very "parisian" and deeply attached to her parents who live here, has now agreed to make plans for aliyah in one year. So I would be expecting a huge wave of French olim in the next year or 2. Hope you're well! Avi
Avi, so nice to hear from you. We will welcome you here in Shiloh when you and your wife make aliyah.
a, so true as AvifromParis admits.
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