Violent protests erupted in Paris on Wednesday against a gala organized by pro-Israel figures which was intended to raise funds for the IDF, and included Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich among its invited guests. The demonstrations came on the eve of a high-stakes soccer match at France’s national stadium against the Israeli national team, overshadowed by tensions around the wars in the Middle East. Authorities in Paris announced that more than 4,000 police officers and 1,600 stadium staff will be deployed for the game.
Smotrich, a vocal advocate of Israeli yishuvim, had been expected to attend Wednesday’s gala, dubbed “Israel is Forever,” which was planned by an association of the same name. The group’s stated goal is to “mobilize French-speaking Zionist forces.”
On Wednesday night, several hundred protesters marched through central Paris, denouncing the event as a “gala of hatred and shame.”
“Imagine if an association were hosting a gala for Hezbollah or Hamas — there’s no way the police would allow that,” said Melkir Saib, a 30-year-old protester. “The situation is just unfair.”
Demonstrators broke windows at a McDonald’s along the route.
A separate group, including “Jewish” leftist organizations opposed to racism and antisemitism, gathered near the Arc de Triomphe chanting slogans against the gala and Smotrich.
French authorities defended the event, with Paris police chief Laurent Nunez claiming that the gala posed “no major threat to public order.”
The protests came days after tensions flared in Paris and Amsterdam related to the conflicts in the Mideast. A massive “Free Palestine” banner was displayed during a Paris Saint-Germain Champions League match against Atletico Madrid, while violence broke out in Amsterdam last week targeting fans of an Israeli soccer club.
(AP)
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3 Responses
VERY STUPID AND IRRESPONSIBLE TO STAGE ANY ISRAELI EVENT IN PARIS OR ANYWHERE IN EUROPE AT THE MOMENT – JUST PROVOCATION!
Anybody that thinks that the existence of the Jewish people is not completely miraculous is blind in mind but it still doesn’t mean that God needs us or that he is persuaded with human feelings meaning not above the natural rather God is completely from our realm of understanding and everything is miraculous
The premise of Zionism is that, once the Jews act like the other nations, antisemitism will disappear. No, as we say three times every day, our job is to praise Hashem, as He did not make us like the nations of the world, and did not place us among the families of the land!