The French government has recognized Shavuot as a national public holiday, making it the third holiday to receive the designation, the European Jewish Press reported. The Jewish New Year of Rosh HaShanah and the Yom Kippur holiday previously have been designated with the same status.
Shavuot usually coincides with school and university examinations, French Chief Rabbi Haim Struk told a French Jewish radio program. Jewish students often learned in universities in other countries in order to avoid the conflict, he explained.