La Grande-Motte: A police officer was injured when a synagogue was set on fire in the south of France | International

A police officer was injured when a burning car exploded in the parking lot of a synagogue in the southern French town of La Grande-Motte on Saturday, officials said, describing the incident as a terrorist attack and saying they would step up security at Jewish institutions. Prime Minister Gabriel Attal said police had launched a search for the suspect and the anti-terrorism prosecutor’s office had been put in charge of the investigation. “This is an anti-Semitic attack. Once again, our Jewish compatriots are the targets,” Attal said on the social network X. “We will not give in.” “In the face of anti-Semitism, in the face of violence, we will never allow ourselves to be intimidated,” he added.

France, like other countries in Europe, has seen a rise in anti-Semitic incidents following Hamas’ attack on Israel on October 7 and Israel’s retaliatory strike on Gaza. “We are making every effort to find the person who carried out this terrorist act and to protect places of worship,” President Emmanuel Macron said.

Two cars, one of which contained at least one gas cylinder, were set on fire in the synagogue parking lot at around 8:30 am (0630 GMT), local media reported. Le Parisien, FranceInfo And other media said a suspect was seen on security cameras wearing a Palestinian flag tied around his waist shortly before the attack.

Several media reported that the injured police officer’s life was not in danger. “The explosion of a gas cylinder in a car in front of the Grande Motte synagogue at the scheduled arrival time of the faithful: this is not just an attack on a place of worship, it is an attempt to kill Jews,” said Yonathan Arfi, who heads CRIF, an association of French Jewish groups in Aix.

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