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France: Synagogue Ransacked Amid Widespread Riots · Antisemitism Watch

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  Speaker 1: You're listening to Antisemitism Watch. I'm Rachel Adler. Today, we're
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  Speaker 1: bringing you critical updates on antisemitism globally. This week, we're
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  Speaker 1: also launching Antisemitism Watch, Mid-Atlantic, with focused coverage from New York,
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  Speaker 1: New Jersey, Connecticut, and the Philadelphia region. Find us at clockworkmedia.org
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  Speaker 1: slash MA across Europe. Incidents of antisemitism continue to surface.
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  Speaker 1: In France, nationwide riots over rising living costs and education
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  Speaker 1: conditions have been marred by acts targeting the Jewish community.
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  Speaker 1: In Paris, a synagogue in the 19th arrondissement, O'Halay Yaakov,
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  Speaker 1: was ransacked, with prayer books and religious items scattered. While
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  Speaker 1: investigators have not established a religious motive and the Torah
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  Speaker 1: scrolls were left untouched, Jewish leaders expressed heightened fears. French
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  Speaker 1: journalist Paul Amer alleged that in Marseille, rioters specifically targeted
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  Speaker 1: Jewish-owned businesses, while sparing Muslim-owned stores. though the Jewish Community
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  Speaker 1: Protection Service cautioned against unverified claims, stating there was no
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  Speaker 1: evidence of selective targeting. This also comes as the historic
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  Speaker 1: town hall in Limoges, a building with a history of
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  Speaker 1: aiding Jews during the Nazi occupation, was set ablaze amid
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  Speaker 1: the unrest, according to jpost.com and yahoo.com reporting. French Interior
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  Speaker 1: Ministry figures show approximately 1,320 anti-Semitic incidents were recorded in
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  Speaker 1: France in 2025, more than triple the 2022 level. In Portland, Oregon,
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  Speaker 1: data from the Portland Police Bureau reveals a stark picture.
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  Speaker 1: Since the fourth quarter of 2023, Jewish residents have been
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  Speaker 1: the targets of 71% of all religion-based hate crimes and
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  Speaker 1: incidents in the city. In 2025 alone, Jews were the
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  Speaker 1: targets of 78% of these religion-based offenses. Bob Horenstein of
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  Speaker 1: the Portland Jewish Federation noted that this trend spans K-12 schools,
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  Speaker 1: college campuses, and the healthcare sector, stating that addressing antisemitism
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  Speaker 1: now consumes three-quarters of his time. The federation has spent
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  Speaker 1: over $ 1. 5 million on security for community institutions. While police
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  Speaker 1: data shows Jews were targeted in 81% of religion-based hate
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  Speaker 1: crimes in 2024 and 50% in the first quarter of 2026,
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  Speaker 1: The overall pattern indicates sustained targeting, according to JNS.org. We
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  Speaker 1: turn now to rhetoric in politics and media. The JNS.org
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  Speaker 1: report highlights the concept of objective antisemitism, where individuals may
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  Speaker 1: deny conscious hatred despite engaging in antisemitic acts. The report
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  Speaker 1: names New York City Mayor Zoran Mamdani as a prominent example,
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  Speaker 1: describing his actions as denying a nation of 7 million
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  Speaker 1: Jews their right to exist. attacking American Jewish pro-Israel activists,
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  Speaker 1: and refusing to condemn anti-Semitic slogans. The article argues that
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  Speaker 1: this phenomenon, where the perpetrator decides who is an acceptable Jew,
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  Speaker 1: is particularly concerning among those on the political left. In Austria,
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  Speaker 1: the first six months of 2026 saw 671 anti-Semitic incidents
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  Speaker 1: recorded by the Reporting Center for Antisemitism of the Jewish
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  Speaker 1: Community of Vienna. While this marks a slight decline from
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  Speaker 1: the previous year, it remains more than double the cases
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  Speaker 1: recorded before October 7, 2023. Significantly, Israel-related antisemitism constituted 75.4%
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  Speaker 1: of all registered cases. Reporting indicates that Jewish people are
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  Speaker 1: often held accountable for the actions of the State of Israel,
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  Speaker 1: with this motif frequently appearing alongside other forms of prejudice,
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  Speaker 1: such as Holocaust relativization and conspiracy myths. The number of
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  Speaker 1: physical assaults rose to 12 during this period, up from
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  Speaker 1: five in the first half of 2025, according to jpost.com.
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  Speaker 1: On campuses, the University of Technology Sydney has faced criticism.
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  Speaker 1: A national review found that UTS ignored Jewish students' concerns
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  Speaker 1: and failed the student group AUJS. Further, the university published
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  Speaker 1: an action plan that falsely accused AUJS of failing to
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  Speaker 1: obtain proper event permissions, alienating Jewish students. The university also
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  Speaker 1: reportedly did not follow its own complaint processes after Jewish
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  Speaker 1: students reported being targeted during a separate pro-Palestine protest. An
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  Speaker 1: article in The Australian reports that the university issued a
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  Speaker 1: public apology to AUJS. In New York City, Jewish residents
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  Speaker 1: report feeling unsafe despite an overall drop in major crime.
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  Speaker 1: The Jewish press reported that a regional director from the
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  Speaker 1: Anti-Defamation League stated the feeling of insecurity is pure antisemitism.
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  Speaker 1: suggesting factors beyond general crime trends are at play. European
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  Speaker 1: Jewish leaders are actively working to prevent severe European Union
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  Speaker 1: sanctions against Israel, which could include losing preferred trade status
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  Speaker 1: and access to vital research programs. Ariel Muzikant, president of
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  Speaker 1: the European Jewish Congress, told the Jerusalem Post that Jewish
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  Speaker 1: leaders are lobbying friendly foreign ministers to block sanctions until
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  Speaker 1: the outcome of upcoming Israeli elections is known. Muzikant warned
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  Speaker 1: that if certain political factions are part of the next
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  Speaker 1: Israeli government and settler violence continues, there will be dramatic sanctions.
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  Speaker 1: He also cautioned that anti-Israel rallies and street protests in
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  Speaker 1: major European cities have frequently devolved into direct hostility against
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  Speaker 1: Jewish targets, with incidents of physical attacks on Jewish-owned businesses
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  Speaker 1: and synagogues reported in cities like Marseille and Paris. Muzikant
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  Speaker 1: noted that the rhetoric has progressed to kof nisht beijudin,
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  Speaker 1: German for don't buy from Jews, warning that we are
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  Speaker 1: not so far away from it. We close with developments
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  Speaker 1: showing resilience and proactive engagement. In Colorado, Ilana Spiegel and
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  Speaker 1: Wynne Howell have been jointly recognized for their work in
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  Speaker 1: building trust among Jewish, immigrant, labor, and progressive leaders to
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  Speaker 1: confront antisemitism and hate. Their partnership is seen as a model,
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  Speaker 1: particularly after they helped navigate community responses to a firebombing
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  Speaker 1: targeting Jewish community members, and later advocated for the attacker's family,
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  Speaker 1: according to Forward.com. Separately, the 2027 Richard M. Levine Shina
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  Speaker 1: Light Arts for Impact program invites students in the Tampa
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  Speaker 1: Bay area to address modern-day antisemitism and Holocaust remembrance through
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  Speaker 1: visual arts and playwriting competitions, offering cash prizes and exhibition
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  Speaker 1: opportunities to encourage creative engagement with these critical issues. Brandy
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  Speaker 1: Gold of Tampa JCC's and Federation stated, Art is a
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  Speaker 1: powerful way for young people to express their ideas, inspire
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  Speaker 1: others and make a difference. As reported by jewishprestampa.com. I'm
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  Speaker 1: Rachel Adler, thank you for listening to Antisemitism Watch. For
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  Speaker 1: focused coverage from New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, and the
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  Speaker 1: Philadelphia region, listen to Antisemitism Watch. MidAtlantic at clockworkmedia.org.ma. Follow
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  Speaker 1: Antisemitism Watch in your podcast app so you don't miss
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  Speaker 1: the next update. This report was generated with AI assistance
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  Speaker 1: and may contain inaccuracies. Please verify important details with primary sources.