Three Jewish men were accosted by an individual armed with a knife on Friday evening in a suspected antisemitic incident near the Trocadéro, located across the Seine from the Eiffel Tower in Paris’s 16th arrondissement, reported the European Jewish Press.
According to the report, the incident occurred shortly after 7:00 p.m. The victims, who were wearing kippahs, had just left a nearby synagogue and were walking in the neighborhood when they noticed a man staring at them intently. The individual approached and asked them repeatedly, “Are you Jews? Are you Israelis?"
When one of the men responded affirmatively, the attacker pulled a knife from his pocket. The victims immediately fled and found police officers nearby. None of the victims were injured.
All three men filed formal complaints, and an investigation was opened for acts of violence with weapons and on religious grounds.
Jérémy Redler, mayor of the 16th arrondissement, condemned the attack “in the strongest possible terms" in a message posted on social media. He expressed his full support for the victims and emphasized that such incidents are a direct assault on the values of the Republic and the safety of its citizens.
“I will continue to fight relentlessly against antisemitism," he stated, adding that “hatred and violence targeting a community have no place in Paris."
The attack comes amid a wider resurgence of antisemitic acts across France. Members of the Jewish community say antisemitic incidents have surged since the Hamas attack on Israel on October 7, 2023, and Israel’s counterterrorism operations in Gaza.
The French interior ministry recorded 886 antisemitic acts between January 1 and August 31, 2025, a 20 percent decrease compared to the same period in 2024.
Just last week, a Jewish primary school in eastern Paris was vandalized when its windows were smashed and a CCTV camera was torn off.
In late December, French authorities launched an investigation after a disturbing video surfaced showing a man harassing a young Jewish boy at Paris’ Charles de Gaulle Airport, ordering him to “free Palestine" and “dance".
A month prior, four individuals were brought before an investigating judge in Paris following violent disturbances at a concert by the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra.