France: Video Captures ‘Anti-Semitic’ Attack On Synagogue, Suspect Seen With ‘Palestinian Flag’

France: An explosion occurred outside a synagogue in La Grande Motte injuring a police officer. The incident is being treated as a potential terror attack, and security has been heightened around Jewish sites in the country.

France synagogue attack: A police officer was wounded in an explosion outside the Beth Yaacov synagogue in La Grande Motte, a seaside resort near Montpellier, southern France, early on Saturday. Authorities are treating the incident as a potential terror attack, leading to heightened security around Jewish sites across the country. The explosion, which occurred during Shabbat, saw two cars outside the synagogue burst into flames after a gas canister likely detonated within one of the vehicles, according to police, news agency AFP reported.

The blast damaged two doors of the synagogue, no religious service was ongoing at the time. Purported visuals of the incident surfaced on social media as CCTV footage reportedly captured an individual setting fire to the cars outside the synagogue. 

France Synagogue Attack: PM Gabriel Attal Condemns ‘Anti-Semitic Act’, Security Of Jewish Sites Beefed Up

French Prime Minister Gabriel Attal confirmed that the country's national anti-terror prosecutors have been tasked with investigating the incident. "La Grande Motte's synagogue was the target of an attack this morning," Attal stated on X. "An anti-Semitic act. Once again, our Jewish fellow citizens are being targeted."

French Interior Minister Gérald Darmanin described the explosion as "an obviously criminal act" and assured that "all means are being deployed to find the perpetrator." He also announced an increased police presence outside Jewish sites in France following the attack.

Both Darmanin and Attal are expected to visit the site later on Saturday, AFP reported.

According to AFP, a source close to the investigation revealed that the suspect was holding a Palestinian flag at the time. The motive behind the attack is being closely examined, particularly given the ongoing war in Gaza, which has heightened tensions in France and other European countries.

ABP could not independently check the veracity of the visual.

The Representative Council of Jewish Institutions in France (CRIF) condemned the explosion as "an attempt to kill Jews." CRIF President Yonathan Arfi emphasised the gravity of the act, noting, "The use of a gas canister in a car at a time when worshippers are expected to arrive at the synagogue is not simply a criminal act. This shows an intention to kill", as quoted by AFP.

The explosion comes amidst a rising tide of anti-Semitic acts in France, with 887 such incidents recorded in the first half of 2024, nearly three times the number reported during the same period in 2023, according to the French Interior Minister. France, home to the largest Jewish community outside Israel and the United States, as well as the largest Muslim community in the European Union, remains on high alert.

Police have locked down the area around the synagogue as investigations continue.