French-speaking MK says Toulouse attack may be tied to France’s election debate about foreigners
Daniel Ben Simon cites the wrangle between far-right candidate Le Pen and incumbent Sarkozy — who laments ‘too many foreigners’ in France
Raphael Ahren is a former diplomatic correspondent at The Times of Israel.
The shooting that left four Jews dead in Toulouse on Monday took place against the background of a national debate about foreigners in France ahead of presidential elections next month, noted MK Daniel Ben Simon.
“I have a feeling that this murder and the previous murder of three French security personnel are connected to the sparking controversy as the time of the elections in France comes closer,” said Ben Simon (Labor), who chairs the Israeli-French Parliamentary Association, in a statement released on Monday evening.
“Suddenly, the debate about foreigners and immigrants took center stage in the debate between the [political] right and the extreme right,” said Ben Simon, who was born in Morocco and speaks fluent French. “I wouldn’t be surprised if crazy people would take advantage of that ugly atmosphere to destroy the delicate fabric of life in the country.”
On Monday morning, a gunman on a motorbike opened fire in front of the Otzar Hatorah school in Toulouse, killing a rabbi, two of his children and another 8-year-old girl. Last Thursday, a gunman on a motorbike killed two French soldiers in Montauban about 50 kilometers from Toulouse. Four days earlier, a similar attack killed another paratrooper in Toulouse. According to French media, the soldiers were of Arab origin.
On Monday, it was reported that the same weapons were possibly used in all three shootings, leading prosecutors to believe they are linked. According to some media reports, French authorities suspect that members of a French paratrooper division who were discharged for being affiliated with Neo-Nazi scene could be behind the attacks.
On April 22, France elects a new president.
Incumbent French President Nicolas Sarkozy, who is campaigning for reelection, has recently been sliding to the right – saying, for example, that there are “too many foreigners” in France – in an effort to woo right-wing voters away from Front National candidate Marine Le Pen.
The Times of Israel Community.