Focus on the leisure park manager in France: focus on anti-Semitism!

Focus on the leisure park manager in France: focus on anti-Semitism!

The head of a French amusement park was taken into custody last Thursday after he denied children from Israel. After an interrogation on Saturday he was released again, but he threatens serious legal consequences: up to five years in prison and a fine of 75,000 euros due to discrimination based on origin, ethnicity or nationality, such as Exxpress.at.

In this incident, France's Interior Minister Bruno Retailleau suspects an anti -Semitic background and expressed hope that the judiciary would "very strictly" act against the leisure parker. He was concerned about the increasing number of anti -Semitic incidents in France, which are currently "explosive", especially in the context of current geopolitical tensions.

Increasing anti -Semitic incidents

According to Tagesschau.de, a total of 504 anti-Semitic incidents were registered between January and May 2025, which is a decrease of 24 percent compared to the same period in the previous year. In contrast, there were more than twice as many incidents in 2023 that have increased by terrifying 134 percent. The Jewish umbrella organization speaks of an "explosion" anti -Jewish act, especially since the beginning of the Gaza war in 2023.

A total of 1,676 anti -Semitic incidents were recorded in France in 2023, a drastic increase compared to 436 in 2022. The Council of Jewish Institutions in France (CRIF) reported that an alarming number of anti -Semitic incidents were registered in the three months after October 7, 2023, which corresponds to the total number of incidents in the three years before.

Social and cultural challenges

France has the largest Jewish population in Europe with almost half a million people. A 2018 survey showed that 77 percent of French Jews believe that anti-Semitism has increased significantly in the past five years, which exceeds the EU average of 63 percent. In addition, 60 percent fear that they will be attacked or insulted in the coming year due to their Jewish identity. This fear is particularly pronounced in view of ever younger perpetrators of anti-Semitic actions in schools, such as bpb.de.

The problems with anti-Semitism in France are not new and often occur in cycles, especially in connection with events in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. After the murder of Mireille Knoll, an 85-year-old Jew and Holocaust survivor, Emmanuel Macron expressed his regret in 2019 about the recovering of anti-Semitism in France.

Public opinion shows that despite a decline in anti -Semitic prejudices in the past 30 years, stereotypes and prejudices continue to exist. bpb.de emphasizes that the image of Jews in France has developed positively in the perception of many people, while "new anti-Semitism" is often associated with criticism of Israel and Zionism.

These current developments illustrate the complexity of anti -Semitism in French society and show that both legislation and social sensitization are urgently necessary. In cases such as that of the amusement park manager, the judiciary must consistently act in order to set a clear sign against discrimination and anti -Semitism.