Macron wants tougher action on antisemitism in France
French President Emmanuel Macron has called for intensified efforts to combat antisemitism in France, as latest government data shows hostility towards Jews remains high despite a decline in recorded incidents last year.
France, which has the largest Jewish community in Europe, documented 1,320 anti-Semitic acts in 2025, according to a report published Thursday by the Interior Ministry; this accounts for 53 percent of all anti-religious incidents.
The department said incidents remained at “historically high” levels for three consecutive years, although they fell 16 percent year-on-year.
This increase followed the Hamas attack on Israel on October 7, 2023, and the subsequent conflict in Gaza.
“Schools, the justice system, elected officials: everyone must be mobilized,” Macron said at a ceremony commemorating the 20th anniversary of the death of Ilan Halimi, a 23-year-old Jew who died after being kidnapped and held captive for 24 days. he said. A gang leader was sentenced to life imprisonment for kidnapping, torture and murder in 2009.
Macron criticized what he called “the poison of online hate” and called on the European Commission to hold major online platforms accountable.
The French leader said, “In Enlightenment France, ‘freedom of expression’ is limited to antisemitism and racism.”
Anti-Semitic actions continue to increase across Europe. Britain records 3,700 anti-Semitic incidents in 2025, according to data published on Wednesday by the Community Security Trust, which protects Jews in the UK; this was the second-worst year on record, with an increase of four percent.
According to the Federal Antisemitism Research and Information Point, antisemitism cases in Germany almost doubled last year to 8,627; This points to violence, vandalism and threats linked to the Gaza conflict.
