French police shot and killed a man armed with a knife and a metal bar who is suspected of having set fire to a synagogue in the Normandy city of Rouen early on Friday, the latest apparent act in a storm of antisemitism roiling France amid the Israel-Hamas war.
Quick Read
- Synagogue Attack in Rouen: French police fatally shot a man who is suspected of setting fire to a synagogue in Rouen, Normandy. The suspect was armed with a knife and a metal bar.
- Details of the Incident: The incident occurred early Friday morning. Fire services responded to a blaze at the synagogue, where they found the suspect on the building’s roof with weapons. He attacked police by throwing the metal bar and charging with a knife, prompting an officer to shoot him.
- Outcome: The suspect was hit by four out of five shots fired by the police, resulting in his death. Efforts are underway to confirm his identity.
- Reaction from Authorities: Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin highlighted the suspect’s intent to burn the synagogue and praised the police for their quick response and bravery.
- Context of Antisemitism: The attack comes amidst a surge in antisemitic acts in France, fueled by the ongoing Israel-Hamas conflict. France, home to the largest Jewish and Muslim communities in Western Europe, has seen a significant increase in such incidents.
- Comments from Local Officials: Rouen Mayor Nicolas Mayer-Rossignol described the attack as an assault on the entire national community and indicative of broader societal issues in France.
- Statistics on Antisemitism: French Prime Minister Gabriel Attal reported a 300% increase in antisemitic acts in the first three months of 2024 compared to the same period in 2023, with more than 1,200 incidents reported in the last quarter of 2023, tripling the total of the previous year.
The Associated Press has the story:
French police fatally shoot a man suspected of setting fire to a synagogue
Newslooks- ROUEN, France (AP) —
French police shot and killed a man armed with a knife and a metal bar who is suspected of having set fire to a synagogue in the Normandy city of Rouen early on Friday, the latest apparent act in a storm of antisemitism roiling France amid the Israel-Hamas war.
Fire services were alerted early Friday morning to a blaze at the synagogue. Police officers who deployed discovered the man on the roof of the building, clutching the metal bar in one hand and the kitchen knife in the other, and smoke rising from the synagogue’s windows, Rouen prosecutor Frédéric Teillet said at a brief news conference.
He said the man hurled abuse and threw the metal bar at the police before jumping off the roof and then running at one of the officers with his knife raised.
The officer fired five shots, hitting the man four times, fatally wounding him, the prosecutor said. He said authorities are seeking to verify the man’s identity. The prosecutor took no questions.
Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin posted on the social media site X that the man was “clearly wanting to set fire to the city’s synagogue.”
He congratulated officers for “their reactivity and their courage.”
Tensions and anger have grown in France over the Israel-Hamas war. Antisemitic acts have surged in the country, which has the largest Jewish and Muslim populations in western Europe.
Rouen Mayor Nicolas Mayer-Rossignol said the man is thought to have climbed onto a trash container and thrown “a sort of Molotov cocktail” inside the synagogue, starting a fire and causing “significant damage.”
“When the Jewish community is attacked, it’s an attack on the national community, an attack on France, an attack on all French citizens,” he said.
“It’s a fright for the whole nation,” he added.
French Prime Minister Gabriel Attal said this month that the sharp spike in antisemitic acts in France that followed the Oct. 7 attack by Hamas on Israel has continued into this year.
Authorities registered 366 antisemitic acts in the first three months of 2024, a 300% increase over the same period last year, Attal said. More than 1,200 antisemitic acts were reported in the last three months of 2023 — which was three times more than in the whole of 2022, he said.
“We are witnessing an explosion of hatred,” he said.
