several complaints filed after an anti-Semitic attack on the university campus

Three young people were victims of physical violence to the cries of “Zionist fascists” during the night from Sunday to Monday, reports the president of the university.

“This is violence that we have never experienced here.” Michel Deneken, president of the University of Strasbourg, condemned Friday February 2 “the anti-Semitic attack which took place on the university campus on the night of Sunday January 28 to Monday January 29″. Several complaints have since been filed.

According to Michel Deneken, “three young Jewish people, including two students, were victims of a physical and verbal attack with cries of ‘Zionist fascists’ by a group of six people. The consequences of their attack were noted by local medicine and medicine legal after filing a complaint with the police”. He specifies that he spoke with one of the victims, a law student “hit, thrown to the ground”.

Since the Hamas attack on Israel on October 7, “we had tags that we erased in the morning to prevent tempers from igniting. These days we have had a few blockages with borderline slogans sometimes in relation to Israel, but this is the first time that we has such serious facts”continued the president of the university, announcing that the university would also file a complaint.

The aggression “must serve as a generalized alert”

The police confirmed to AFP the filing of complaints, in particular for assault and battery. “The victims received blows but there was no hospitalization. There have not yet been any arrests. The investigation is ongoing”specified the same source.

In a press release released Thursday, notably on Instagram, the Union of Jewish Students of France (UEJF) explained that an activist from the association, “accompanied by two other Jewish students, were putting up posters calling for the release of Hamas hostages and the phrase ‘No to anti-Semitism’ near the law campus” when they were “verbally threatened by an anti-Zionist activist”. This one is “returned with a group of five people” who hit the three students while insulting them. The UEJF specifies that “One of the victims suffered significant bruising.”

The UEJF contacted its lawyer, Sacha Ghozlan, to join the complaints filed by the victims. “This anti-Semitic physical attack committed in a meeting cannot go unpunished”declared Samuel Lejoyeux, president of the UEJF in the press release. “It must also serve as a general warning: the demonization of Israel fueled by small far-left groups in universities leads to anti-Semitic violence. It is urgent to stop tolerating it.”