The headquarters of Israeli airline El Al in Paris was the target of anti-Semitic vandalism on Wednesday night (6), with graffiti and red paint dirtying the facade of the building. An Israeli government minister accused French President Emmanuel Macron of contributing to the incident.
According to information from the Associated Press agency, El Al reported that no one was injured during the attack, as the office was empty when the act of vandalism occurred. Among the messages left by the vandals were “Palestine Free” and “Genocide airline”.
El Al stated that he “unequivocally condemns all forms of violence, particularly those motivated by hatred,” and that their planes will “proudly” the Israeli flag.
Israel’s ambassador to France, Joshua Zarka, was at the scene on Thursday (7) and published a photo of dirt in post on X.
Zarka wrote that the goal of the “anti-Semitic criminals” was “to send violent messages to the Israeli population outside their country, so they knew they were not welcome.”
“The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the State of Israel supports El Al and the Israelis, and the service of Israeli companies, wherever they are located,” the ambassador added. “We will do everything, in collaboration with the French authorities, to identify the culprits and bring them to justice.”
Last month, France President Emmanuel Macron announced that he will recognize a Palestinian state at the UN General Assembly in September, as he was described by the Israeli government as “reward for terrorism.”
This Thursday, Miri Regev, Minister of Transport and Road Safety and member of the political and security office of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, said that the announcement of Macron contributed to the act of vandalism at El AL’s headquarters.
“French citizens, wake up! Today is El Al, tomorrow is Air France. When French President Macron makes announcements that gift the [grupo terrorista] Hamas, this is the result, ”wrote Regev on X.
“I condemn the barbaric and violent act against El Al and I hope the French authorities will locate the criminals and take energetic measures against them,” he said. The Macron Government has not yet commented on the statement by Regev.
