Anti-Israel incitement mutates into antisemitic cruelty, proving Jews remain targets across Europe today.
French authorities have opened a criminal investigation after a shocking video surfaced showing a man harassing a young Jewish boy at Charles de Gaulle Airport, exposing once again how anti-Israel slogans are increasingly weaponized against Jews themselves.
The footage, widely circulated online, shows a man confronting a visibly Jewish child, ordering him to “free Palestine” and humiliating him by forcing him to dance while threatening to snatch his kippah. What should have been a place of transit and safety instead became a stage for ideological bullying—directed not at a state, but at a child.
Paris police chief Patrice Faure condemned the incident as “unacceptable and intolerable,” vowing that it would not go unpunished. The Bobigny Public Prosecutor’s Office confirmed an investigation into violence motivated by race, religion, or ethnicity—a classification that underscores the gravity of the offense.
The video, shared by the SwordOfSalomon account, has amassed hundreds of thousands of views, resonating far beyond France. Jewish organizations report that such incidents have surged since Hamas’ October 7 massacre in Israel, followed by a wave of global protests that too often slide from political expression into outright antisemitism.
CRIF President Yonathan Arfi described the airport abuse as emblematic of a broader European malaise—where antisemitism is no longer whispered, but performed openly, confidently, and without shame. The slogans are familiar, but the targets are revealing: Jews, regardless of age, nationality, or views, are treated as stand-ins for Israel.
This is the predictable outcome of years of indulgence toward radical Palestinian narratives and Arab-aligned activism that blur the line between criticism of Israel and hatred of Jews. When “Free Palestine” becomes a taunt hurled at a child, the moral pretense collapses.
Israel continues to defend itself against terror. Europe, meanwhile, struggles to defend its Jewish citizens against the fallout of incitement it long excused. The investigation may identify one perpetrator—but the deeper crisis is cultural, ideological, and far from resolved.
