 | | Actualités | | | | | Mr. Prime minister, in the country which first granted full citizenship to Jews in 1791, when will we live again our Jewishness without fear? | | Mr. Prime minister of the French Republic Mr. President of the National Assembly, Mr. President of the Senate Distinguished Ministers, Lady and Gentlemen former Prime Ministers, Dear Elected officials, Dear Ambassadors, Dear Distinguished Representatives of religions, Ladies and Gentlemen, Please allow me to begin with an anecdote that will offset the gravity of tonight’s exchange: One day, a visitor went to the zoo and was amazed to see a truly biblical scene: a wolf and a lamb together in a cage! Surprised, the visitor asked the zoo keeper: “How miraculous! How did you do this?”; “Oh that's simple, every morning, the lamb is changed”! In real life, human beings are both wolves and lambs and the world cannot be divided between nice and nasty. We all defend the values in which we believe. But defending an idea must not give us permission to impose it by force on others! Last year, in this same place, we remembered with profound sorrow the memory of the victims of January 2015, cartoonists, policemen and Jews, murdered for who they were. A targeted violence, a ruthless violence, an inconceivable violence. The reaction of the French people on January 11 was impressive by its emotion and grandeur. But our country had probably not fully understood or admitted that it was at war, a war imposed on France, and a war that relies on terror to obtain this horrible concept of submission. Jews are often the first victims of barbarity, but they are never alone. Frantz Fanon expressed... |  |
| | ALL NEWS |  | | Actualités | | | | | Valls expressed his "solidarity" toward French Jews and strongly condemned anti-Semitism. |
| | France's Socialist Prime Minister Manual Valls says he understands French Jews' fear amid heightened religious tension in the country after attacks by Islamic extremists in Paris last year. Valls expressed his "solidarity" toward French Jews and strongly condemned anti-Semitism whether it comes from the "far-left" or the "far-right" at an event Monday organized by the country's main Jewish organization. "Yes, Jews of France are afraid to wear the kippa (the traditional skull cap), to go to the synagogue, to do shopping in a kosher market, to send their children to public school. That's a reality, and a reality we do not accept," Valls said at the annual dinner of the CRIF Jewish Council. Many high ranking French politicians as well as Catholic and Muslim religious leaders attended the event. | | |
|  | | Actualités | | | | | "There is much to do to improve the situation." |
| | 2015 was a very difficult year, what is your assessment today? Roger Cukierman: It actually started very badly with the attacks of Charlie Hebdo and the Hypercacher. It continued throughout the year with a series of anti-Semitic attacks equivalent to what we have known in 2014, which was already at a very high level. 2015 ended with the terrible attacks of Bataclan, Paris cafes and the stadium. The government was true to its friendly attitude towards Jews and decided to protect us effectively with police, gendarmes and soldiers outside our synagogues and schools. But the general feeling of French Jews is that they don not have the same freedom of movement as other citizens. Some have decided to leave France, sometimes prefering dangerous destinations, since Israel is not a safe haven. So yes, we face real problems. Did you see, this year - even though the term is often used - a real "awareness" of the... | | |
|  | | Actualités | | | | | At the time of this despicable crime, Roger Cukierman was already president of CRIF. |
| By Violaine of Courières, published in La Vie February 17, 2016 For the Jewish community, this case remains emblematic of the late French awareness against the resurgence of anti-Semitism. Roger Cukierman remembers. He was, at the time, already president of CRIF: "Thirty French, Caribbean and Portuguese guys tortured him to extract money from his family. All this, based on a prejudice : "the Jews are rich and they will pay". No one in the building of Bagneux, where Ilan was held, took his phone, even anonymously, to tell about what was happening." For the Jewish community, these anti-Semitic acts were the harbingers of the current jihadism. This drama "announced in its way a series of criminal gestures : Mohammed Merah killings in 2012, the shooting of the Jewish Museum in Brussels in 2014, the drama of the Hypercacher last year," said Bernard Cazeneuve in Bagneux. Faced with such atrocities, ten years later, Roger Cukierman "understands better how young people drift towards... | | |
|  | | Actualités | | | | | Roger Cukierman, President of CRIF, attended, Thursday, March 3, 2016, in London, the CST's annual dinner. |
| | 1200 people were present, including the British Home Secretary, Theresa May, and many MPs including Sir Eric Rickles - who had already met the CRIF before - John Mann, Chairman of the Committee against anti-Semitism in the UK, and Louise Ellma, British Deputy. The Home Secretary, Theresa May, announced that Britain will continue to fund measures to protect the Jewish community. CST is financially supported by its President, Gerald Ronson, and his deputy President, Lloyd Dorfman. CST's CEO is David Delew. Among the guests, there were many representatives of the British police. A film was shown, after the speeches, on the occasion of an appeal for donations. | | |
|  | | Actualités | | | | | Over 500 people were present to attend the panel discussion Fillon before the Friends of CRIF on February 15, 2016. |
| | The meeting was moderated by Nathalie Saint-Cricq, head of the political department of "France Télévisions" Group. The former prime minister explained the proposals of his running program to the Republican primaries. Regretting the lack of results in 30 years, he focused on major points of his program: elimination of the 35 hours, simplification of the Work Code and fixing the legal age of retirement at 65. Regarding hatred and anti-Semitism on social networks, he reaffirmed that there must be no tolerance from the French government. He also confirmed his worrying in front of the rise of anti-Semitism, demanding "zero tolerance". "Islamic terrorism has become a global threat requires a global alliance to fight it", further stated François Fillon. He stressed that "Israel's security is non-negotiable" and confirmed to be opposed to the labeling of products from the territories : "Taking part in the peace process is neither labelling products nor recognizing a country with a... | | |
|  | | Communiqués | | | | | The CRIF reiterates its request to the Minister of Culture to intervene quickly. |
| | Communiqué of CRIF, February 10, 2016 The CRIF deplores once again that the theaters in France continue to host Dieudonné in 2016, while he has been twelve times convicted by justice for incitement to hatred and as he was recently sentenced to two months imprisonment by the Criminal court of Liège (Belgium). The CRIF is shocked that a recidivist anti-Semitic offender can still be considered as an "artist" and have access to facilities held or delegated by public services. The President of CRIF Roger Cukierman reiterates his request to the Minister of Culture to intervene quickly so that such abuses will not occur with impunity. The same request was addressed to the operators of the facilities, including the Fimalac Group, parent of the VEGA company, which provides 50% of the dates of Dieudonné's tour. | | |
|  | | Actualités | | | | | Following a television broadcast advocating BDS released on February 10, 2016, the CRIF reacted. |
| | President Roger Cukierman addressed, on February 11 a letter to the President of "France Télévisions", Mrs Delphine Ernotte, in which he expressed concern after the film France 2 aired on February 10, a documentary making the apology of BDS. Roger Cukierman stressed that "Prime Minister Manuel Valls has repeatedly said that the boycott of Israeli products is prohibited by the law and provides support for the development of anti-Zionism and anti-Semitism." "This broadcast makes the apology of a practice prohibited by law. It helps disinformation and delegitimization of Israel," he wrote. "Experience has shown that BDS is also likely to promote hatred of Israel and of the Jews of France, and thus to legitimize and encourage attacks against Jews," added the President of CRIF. "A few days after giving a very long tribune to a patented activist, in a debate against Alain Finkielkraut, Mr Pujadas distinguished himself further, a behavior seen by many French Jews as anti-Semitic," he... | | |
|  | | Actualités | | | | | Roger Cukierman, President of CRIF reacted. |
| | The President of CRIF wrote on February 16, 2016, to the Prefect of Police and to the Interior Minister, to protest against the authorization given to pro-Palestinian demonstrations, following the vote by the City of Paris of a vow prohibiting BDS actions. The Prefect said that the authorization given to the Communist Party and the Palestinian National Committee came with a warning not to call for boycott. In a telephone interview, following the demonstration of February 20, Place d'Italie, the Prefect of Police confirmed to the President of CRIF that if any leaflets, banners or calls for boycotts took place, it would have consequences. | | |
|  | | Actualités | | | | | Thursday, February 4 2016, the CRIF met Katrin Mansson, Adviser for Political Affairs of the Embassy of Sweden. |
| | At this meeting, the CRIF spoke of the situation of Jews in Sweden, particularly worrying in some cities like Malmo, and of Sweden politics towards Israel. The Embassy of Sweden shared the concern of the CRIF about the spread of anti-Semitism in Nordic countries. Katrin Mansson assured the CRIF of the Swedish government's commitment to the security of Jewish sites. The CRIF asked the Advisor about the motivations behind Sweden's unilateral recognition of the Palestinian state. Katrin Mansson motivated this decision by the coming to power of the Social Democratic Party. The CRIF stressed that this recognition broked the dynamics of building a common foreign policy of the European Union and revealed the partisan and politician logic within each state. The CRIF finally recalled the distressing remarks of the Foreign Minister of Sweden after the attacks of November 13 in Paris. Katrin Mansson said that the remark had been misinterpreted. Aware of the many issues requiring enhanced... | | |
|  | | Actualités | | | | | Over the past year the Jews of France have again been in the headlines, and for all the wrong reasons. |
| | By Professor Mireille Hadas-Lebel (Sorbonne), audio and video recording on the website of France Culture Not so long ago it was said that French Jews, who make up less than 1% of the population, were "everywhere". Now there are signs that they are disappearing althogether from the French landscape, prompting the State's highest officials to declare that, "without Jews, France will no longer be France". Since it is the task of the historian to attempt to clarify the past, I will first recall the long history of the Jewish presence in France. Many will be surprised to learn that there were already Iudaei, that is to say Judaeans (whose name has been distorted into "Jews") in Roman Gaul. We know for certain that in the year 6 CE, Augustus exiled a son of King Herod to a city named Vienna(south of Lyons) at the request of his Judaean subjects, who hated the son as much as they hated the father. Another of Herod’s sons was exiled to Lugdunum (Lyons) some thirty years later. We know... | | |
| | PRESS REVIEW |  | | France | | | | | The vice president of CRIF told the BBC about the situation of the Jewish community in France. |
| | You can see or review the speech of the French Minister of Interior, Bernard Cazeneuve, HERE. You can see or review the intervention of Gil Taieb, vice... | | |
|  | | France | | | | | Guests included Manuel Valls, Anne Hidalgo, Roger Cukierman and Isaac Herzog. |
| | Security was especially tight around the elegant Paris Municipality building last night as top French politicians, intellectuals... | | |
|  | | France | | | | | More than one in 10 also said they thought there were too many Jewish people in France. |
| | A total of 59 per cent of French people think members of the Jewish community are at least partially responsible for anti-Semitism,... | | |
|  | | Monde | | | | | The House of Commons this month voted overwhelmingly to condemn BDS, the movement that aims to boycott, divest from and sanction Israel. |
| | The motion, put forward by Conservative members of Parliament Tony Clement and Michelle Rempel, reads fairly simply: “That, given Canada and Israel... | | |
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