Israeli Diaspora Affairs and Combating Antisemitism Minister Amichai Chikli sent letters early this week to French Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu and Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez to sound the alarm ahead of the upcoming Oct. 7 anniversary, Israel Hayom has learned exclusively.
He demanded they act immediately to shore up protection for French Jews through the week. The warning followed situational assessments at the Diaspora Affairs Ministry, built on intelligence pointing to a heightened danger to Jews in France as violent protests converge with memorial events marking the atrocities.
In his letter, Chikli noted that high-school riots across France have, over the past week, turned into open platforms for antisemitic incitement. Students have waved Palestinian flags, chanted against Israel, and in some cases, displayed swastikas. “In recent weeks, hostility has increasingly been directed at Jewish and Israeli targets in France,” he wrote.
Chikli pointed to two specific incidents. “On September 15, an Israeli flag displayed in a public exhibit of 196 national flags at Bastille Square was vandalized with blood-red paint. In recent days, groups of activists formally demanded that the governor of Paris ban the aliyah fair set to take place in Paris on October 11,” he wrote.
He backed his warning with hard numbers. Official French Interior Ministry data show 533 antisemitic acts in the first half of 2026 alone, accounting for 46% of all anti-religious acts recorded nationwide, despite Jews making up less than 1% of France’s population.
‘The anniversary has become a focal point for those seeking to harm Jews’
“The anniversary of October 7 has become a focal point for those seeking to harm Jews and Israelis, and the closer we get to it, the more vigilance is required. Against this backdrop, I view the coming days with particular concern,” Chikli wrote.
French student organizations, he said, have called for a new national mobilization day on Oct. 6, including blockades of high schools and universities, which organizers have branded a “day of wrath.” Protests are then set to follow across France and Europe on Oct. 7 itself.
“On October 7, the third anniversary of the massacre carried out by Hamas, protests are planned in France and across Europe, some of which openly celebrate the massacre,” Chikli wrote. “In such a climate, synagogues, Jewish schools, community institutions, and visibly identifiable Jews on the street, all of them, are exposed.”
He called for stronger protection at Jewish institutions, along with dedicated security for community memorial events and the planned Paris aliyah fair.
Chikli also asked that, wherever legally possible, French authorities ban protests glorifying the Oct. 7 massacre or inciting violence against Jews. He offered to share intelligence gathered by his ministry to support that effort.
“The Jewish community in France is an inseparable part of the Republic. Its security in the coming days is a test for all of us who refuse to let hatred dictate who is allowed to live freely and without fear,” he concluded.
This article was originally published by Israel Hayom.
