Several resorts in the French Alps are welcoming members of the Orthodox Jewish community every summer, particularly as part of organized trips.

 

A “Free Palestine” graffiti was found on cars belonging to Jewish people vacationing in the French resort town of Châtel in Haute-Savoie, media reported.  

According to the police, four vehicles were marked with orange paint, leading to the opening of an investigation.

The mayor of Châtel, Nicolas Rubin, said that five vehicles belonging to Jewish tourists, mainly British nationals, were targeted, and that they were “recognizable by their clothing.”

“It’s sad and disappointing,” the mayor told Agence France Presse. “This is a community that asks nothing of anyone, disturbs no one, and is on vacation.”

A public prosecutor confirmed on Wednesday that “an investigation has been opened into the destruction or damage of property committed on the grounds of the victim’s alleged race, ethnicity, nationality, or religion.”

The mayor said that the gendarmerie was working hard to identify the perpetrator or perpetrators, relying in particular on CCTV footage. He added that the presence of the gendarmerie brigade would be reinforced in his municipality to deter and protect the population until the end of the holidays.

In a statement, the local branch of Crif, the representative body of Jewish institutions in France, ‘’condemned these despicable acts, committed in a holiday resort where Jewish families from all over the world regularly stay.”

On X, the group said that “targeting Jewish families in France is unacceptable” and deplores the fact that “hatred of Israel” is “too often the fuel for hatred of Jews.”

According to AFP, several resorts in the Alps are welcoming members of the Orthodox Jewish community every summer, particularly as part of organized trips.