A dozen graves at a Jewish cemetery in the southwest of France have been desecrated, the local community says, after the latest in a string of recent attacks that have sparked concerns about a wave of anti-Semitism.
Deborah Loupien-Suares, the head of the Jewish community in the towns of Bayonne and Biarritz, says she discovered the damage on Sunday when visiting the graves of her grandparents.
A picture taken on January 7, 2020, shows the Jewish cemetery of Bayonne, southwestern France, where a dozen graves were desecrated a few days prior. (Photo by GAIZKA IROZ / AFP)
“There is significant damage to up to 10 tombs at the cemetery which have been smashed,” she tells AFP, expressing her “shock and horror.”
Tombstones were broken as well as a commemorative plaque for a girl who was deported during World War II.
Loupien-Suares says she will file a criminal complaint with police in Bayonne, where prosecutors have confirmed an investigation is underway.
“There is no anti-Semitic graffiti and I don’t want to inflame a debate. I want the investigation to take place calmly,” she says.
But she adds that the Catholic cemetery which “is situated just opposite and is more easily accessible” was not damaged.
— AFP
Help us report truthfully on social media
As a multimedia journalist, my job is to take the quality, fact-based journalism produced by The Times of Israel newsroom and make it accessible across every platform — from Instagram posts to podcasts to short-form videos.
This is how many, especially young people, consume news these days. But misinformation is rampant on social media. Our team at ToI produces accurate, responsible short-form reporting on Israel and the Jewish world.
If you believe in the importance of factual social media journalism, please consider joining our reader support group, The Times of Israel Community. Your financial support is essential to sustain responsible multimedia reporting.
We’re really pleased that you’ve read X Times of Israel articles in the past month.
That’s why we started the Times of Israel - to provide discerning readers like you with must-read coverage of Israel and the Jewish world.
So now we have a request. Unlike other news outlets, we haven’t put up a paywall. But as the journalism we do is costly, we invite readers for whom The Times of Israel has become important to help support our work by joining The Times of Israel Community.
For as little as $6 a month you can help support our quality journalism while enjoying The Times of Israel AD-FREE, as well as accessing exclusive content available only to Times of Israel Community members.
Thank you, David Horovitz, Founding Editor of The Times of Israel
From the Liveblog of
Tuesday, January 7, 2020
Add ToI as a Preferred Source on Google
