French leaders and activists called for people to take to the streets to protest after prosecutors filed preliminary charges of murder with anti-Semitic motives Tuesday in the horrific death of an elderly Jewish woman.
Mireille Knoll, 85, was killed Friday in her apartment, which was then set on fire, according to a French judicial official. Francis Kalifat, president of the Jewish group CRIF, said Knoll was stabbed 11 times.
Two men have been jailed in the case, according to the judicial official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak to the media. They face preliminary charges of robbery, damaging property, and murder with anti-Semitic motives, he said.
Knoll reportedly escaped a notorious World War II roundup of Paris Jews, in which police herded some 13,000 people — including more than 4,000 children — into a stadium and shipped them to the Auschwitz death camp in Nazi German-occupied Poland. Fewer than 100 survived.
Then 9, Knoll fled with her mother to Portugal, returning to France only after the end of the war.
Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo called on “all Parisians” to join a silent march Wednesday in memory of Knoll. Politicians across the political spectrum promised to attend.
French President Emmanuel Macron tweeted that Knoll’s death was a “horrific crime,” and reaffirmed his “absolute determination to fight against anti-Semitism.”
The CRIF compared the killing to that of Sarah Halimi, 65, who was beaten and thrown from her balcony last April. That murder was reclassified as anti-Semitic last month. The suspect is in a psychiatric hospital.
France’s government presented a plan this month to fight racism and anti-Semitism, focusing on social media and prevention in schools. It also wants to change French law to force internet platforms to detect and remove illegal content.
An annual national count of racist, anti-Semitic, anti-Muslim and anti-Christian acts — most of which involve threats — dipped in 2017 compared with the year before. But anti-Semitic violence increased by 26 percent, and criminal damage to Jewish places of worship and burial by 22 percent.
(AP)
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4 Responses
Woe unto Us – the Brutal Barbarian Murder of an Elderly Jewish woman by a Moslem Terrorist Just because she is Jewish!!
It must be Made More Public and OPen the DEmand For ACTION and AWARENESS of This Clear Islamic Deadly Hatred!
Jews for good reason feel unsafe in much of France! and Indeed of Europe MAINLY because of the MOSLEMS there!! We Must Also Bring THiS Obvious Attention to the GENERAL US JEWISH LIBERAL Groups such as those that Dumbly Fought Strongly Against President Trumps attempts to much Stronger vetting of immigrants from Moslem Lands! Of course we should look at EUROPE and SEE WHAT HAPPENED THERE!! In France and England and BElgium and Sweden and GErmany Jews often live in fear Because of the MOSLEMS THERE!! Elderly Women Are Brutally Murdered and Indeed Children and THeir Parents killed for being JEWISH! Indeed in US College Campuses there is OFTEN INTIMIDATION by Moslem Students of Jewish students AND THEIR INVITED GOVERNMENT Guests for speeches!! IT STEMS LARGELY FROM DECADES LONG BRAINWASHING BY THE MOSLEM DICTATORSHIPS! THEY EVEN HAVE STORIES IN THEIR MEDIA OF JEWS USING NON JEWISH BLOOD FOR PASSOVER and Make Up CLearly FABRICATED STORIES of Israelis Killing thousands of Palestinians (hello did CNN miss that?) This Needs to Be Brought Up TO Arab Allies also Publicly! For the Safety of European and American Citizens!
Isn’t it ironic this poor woman was able to survive Nazis (ym) but not murderous Muslim invaders (ym)? May be this is a sign to warn us about who is more dangerous to Jews now. Are we going to see Chuck Schumer crying in public after this poor woman?
It probably wasn’t anti semitic. The attacker was most likely suffering mental illness…
galicianer , this “mental illness” is called Islam.