For months Jews in Strasbourg and throughout Alsace have suffered from attacks and harassment. Jewish graves have been desecrated, antisemitic graffiti attributed to the far right and to Muslims has been spray-painted and cars have been torched. Since the beginning of the year 15 attacks have been reported. A Muslim cemetery was also attacked.
So far no suspects have been arrested. In Strasbourg, debates rage over the identity of the attackers who prowl in the night. The city's socialist mayor is accusing Nicolas Sarkozy's government of stirring an atmosphere of racism and xenophobia, and dismisses the attacks as "a group of unrestrained neo-Nazi hoodlums."
A local high school teacher disputes his remarks, claiming both the extreme right and Muslims attack Jews and the neo-Nazis attack Muslims. "The communities are at odds," he says. "The far right has drawn closer to the Muslims against the Jews and Israel."
At the latest Islamic demonstration, marchers lit torches and carried firebombs, issuing calls to burn down the central synagogue. In recent months harassment has become more focused. Two cars owned by businessmen of Turkish descent were set ablaze during the early morning hours in a wealthy Strasbourg suburb and swastikas were spray-painted on the gates to the house along with the letter "H" for Hitler.
After the two torched cars brought front-page headlines in Istanbul, the socialist mayor decided to respond by calling on the government to affirm its dedication to the values of the Republic. Everyone, except for the Jews, holds Sarkozy responsible, as if he and his agents dispatch the attackers.
Following the accusations, the district commissioner summoned Alsace mayors and party leaders, demanding they refute the accusations and issue blanket condemnations of the racist attackers. Right-wing officials demanded an apology from the left. The Strasbourg's socialist mayor aggravates the situation by ignoring the attackers, who leap out from the alleyways of the suburbs and the anti-Israeli demonstrations.
Strasbourg Chief Rabbi Rene Gutman, the president of the Muslim Council and the head of the church of Alsace signed a joint notice saying, "Nothing can justify the hatred and the religious debasement." But it seems the politically correct phrasing was intended to protect each clergyman and his community more than to try to identify the attackers and their motives. A Protestant official claimed that the neo-Nazi gangs cross over the border from Germany. But based on their choice of targets, the perpetrators appear to be highly familiar with Strasbourg and its residents. The commissioner promised to conduct a speedy investigation in order to find the offenders and identify who is behind them.
