When, as in France, the radical left and Islamists blame Jews for Israel’s policies, a line has been crossed

*This article was originally published in German

Burning town halls, looted shops, injured police officers: France is going through a wave of violence. The legitimate demands for better-resourced schools cannot explain it. The violence buries them.

What does this mean for France’s Jews? First, we must stay precise. In Marseille, Jewish-owned shops were among those vandalized. But despite claims on social media, there is no evidence they were targeted because of their owners’ religion, as the French Jewish community’s security service (SPCJ) has made clear. Spreading rumors helps no one.

The problem lies elsewhere: where Jews are held responsible for Israel’s policies and “Zionist” becomes a slur, a line has been crossed. We see this in the protests too. No, solidarity with Palestinians is not antisemitism. But it does not excuse it either.

Resentment toward Jews is always a sign that a society is coming apart. When Jewish children have to hide their identity at school and threats against Jews are downplayed as political expression, this concerns democracy as a whole. Yet too many want to see it only as a problem for France’s Jewish community.

The depth of the crisis is now becoming clear: radicalization, Islamism and extreme polarization are colliding with a state whose authority is eroding. Jean-Luc Mélenchon’s radical left turns legitimate grievances into an indictment of the system. Its goal is permanent confrontation. The search for solutions gets lost along the way.

Many Jews know the feeling of being abandoned by the state. Now shopkeepers whose livelihoods have been destroyed, and citizens who fear for their safety, are experiencing it too. We do not need to prove that every smashed window was aimed at a Jew. What we must understand is that tolerating hatred of Jews is a warning sign. Those who ignore it endanger everyone’s freedom.

Simone Rodan-Benzaquen is senior envoy for Europe at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies (FDD).