Stars of David painted on Jewish homes in ‘despicable and intolerable’ attack

31 October 2023 , 13:45

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The graffiti was discovered on Jewish homes and businesses across Paris (Image: AFP via Getty Images)

Dozens of Stars of David have been painted on the walls of Jewish homes and businesses across Paris in a "despicable and intolerable Kristallnacht-style attack linked to the Israel-Hamas War.

Police in the French capital say the 60 anti-Semitic messages appeared in the early hours of this morning. The chilling attacks resemble those left on Jewish properties on Kristallnacht – the Night of Broken Glass – in Nazi Germany in November 1938 by paramilitaries marking out buildings which were later attacked in a prelude to the Holocaust. Carine Petit, Mayor of the 14th arrondissement, said they were ‘intolerable acts’ which cause ‘shame, and disgust’ across France.

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More than 60 were found painted across the French capital (AFP via Getty Images)

She said of the racist action: “This act of marking recalls the processes of the 1930s and the Second World War which led to the extermination of millions of Jews.” CCTV is being studied to discover who might be responsible for the graffiti, while cleaners are working to clean away the vile graffiti. David Belliard, deputy mayor of the 14th district, meanwhile said the graffiti “‘reminds us of the darkest hours of our history.”

Jews across France, including in Paris, were infamously persecuted during the Second World War, as the French collaborated with the Nazis. Police organised ‘round-ups’ of Jews, while organisations including SNCF, the French national railway, entrained Jews to concentration camps. More than 800 anti-Semitic acts have been reported across France since the Hamas terrorist attack in Israel on October 7, with 414 arrests made. There has also been a spike in Islamophobic acts, as Muslims report attacks linked to the Israeli invasion of Gaza.

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This morning police in Paris opened fire on a woman who allegedly made threatening remarks and shouted "Allahu akbar" on a train. It is the latest security incident in the country that has been on heightened anti-terror alert since . Police said officers opened fire after the 38-year-old woman didn't respond to their warnings on the service near Bibliothèque François-Mitterrand station. It is believed she has stomach wounds.

Armed officers arrived at the station soon after 8.30am, and the woman – who was dressed in an Islamic veil – "threatened to blow herself up," said a source. She is also said to have shouted "Allahu akbar" – Arabic for "God is the Greatest". A source said: “Fearing for their safety, the police opened fire around 9:20 a.m. She was then injured in the stomach and evacuated immediately."

Antony Clements-Thrower