French Authorities Hunt Suspect After Synagogue Arson Attack Injures Police Officer
Authorities in France are searching for a suspect following an arson attack on the Beth Yaacov synagogue in the southwestern Mediterranean town of La Grande-Motte near Montpellier. The attack, which took place on Saturday morning, resulted in the injury of a police officer.
The National Anti-terrorism Prosecutor's Office reported that two cars parked at the synagogue complex were set ablaze just after 8 a.m. local time. Firefighters responding to the scene also discovered fires at two entrances to the synagogue.
A police officer was injured when a propane gas tank in one of the vehicles exploded as he approached the site. Fortunately, the five people present in the complex at the time, including the synagogue's rabbi, were unharmed.
The incident is being treated as an attempted assassination and a terrorist act, with investigators probing links to a terrorist group. The attack is also being investigated as a deliberate crime aimed at causing harm and as the destruction of property using dangerous means.
Local resident Karam Paquin, who has lived in La Grande-Motte for over 25 years, expressed shock at the attack. "The noise I heard was louder than anything I've ever heard in my life," she told Reuters. "I often pass by this street because I work nearby. It's true that today I was lucky—I could have been injured or even killed."
French President Emmanuel Macron condemned the attack, labeling it a "terrorist attack" and confirming that a manhunt for the perpetrator is underway. According to French media reports, CCTV footage captured a suspect shortly before the attack, reportedly wearing a Palestinian flag tied around their waist.
"The fight against antisemitism is a constant battle," Macron said on social media.
Acting Prime Minister Gabriel Attal also condemned the incident, calling it "an act of antisemitism." "Once again, our Jewish fellow citizens are being targeted," Attal stated. "Faced with antisemitism, faced with violence, we will never let ourselves be intimidated."
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