On November 23, in Paris, a 26yearold Jewish woman, four months pregnant, was in her apartment with her oneandahalfyearold baby when a person claiming to be a delivery man rang the doorbell.
When she opened the door, two people wearing face masks entered the apartment and pushed her. One grabbed her by the neck, the other threatened her with a weapon. Frightened, the victim's baby began to cry. One of the attackers tightened their grip on her throat and the young woman eventually lost consciousness.
The two people left with around 6,000 euros in jewelry, 400 euros and 150 dollars in cash. The victim was taken to hospital and treated for four days.
The two minors under 16 years of age who committed the armed extortion were arrested on Wednesday December 6th in Vald'Oise: “They are both French nationals. One is of the African type, the other of the North African type. They are very unfavorably known to the police,” a police source told Le Figaro newspaper. The law prohibits the disclosure of the identity of underage suspects.
The investigation entrusted to the 2nd Criminal Police District (2nd DPJ) revealed that the victim was selected because she was Jewish.
While in police custody, the criminals admitted their participation in the events and said that they were acting on behalf of a mysterious sponsor whose identity they did not want to reveal. According to her, the victim was targeted by this sponsor “because she is Jewish and therefore rich.”
The defendants were brought before the Pontoise court on December 7th. The legal consequences are not clear.
AntiSemitism is already part of everyday French reality. Some French Jews, who have been victims of attacks and discrimination, even change their easily identifiable Jewish names on train platforms and remove their names from mailboxes.