French authorities arrest Tunisian twin brothers after DNA evidence links them to the cutting down of an olive tree honoring Ilan Halimi, reigniting France’s alarm over surging antisemitism.
French prosecutors confirmed on Wednesday the arrest of twin brothers accused of desecrating a memorial olive tree planted in honor of Ilan Halimi — the young Jewish man brutally tortured and murdered in 2006.
The symbolic tree, planted in 2011 in Epinay-sur-Seine, a northern suburb of Paris, was discovered cut down earlier this month, triggering a wave of shock and condemnation across France.
According to the Bobigny prosecutor’s office, the suspects — both Tunisian nationals without permanent residency — are facing immediate trial under a fast-track procedure for racially or religiously aggravated desecration of a monument. Their identities were reportedly confirmed through DNA evidence collected at the site.
The destruction has drawn anger from France’s highest offices. President Emmanuel Macron vowed that justice would be served, while Prime Minister François Bayrou condemned the act as an expression of “antisemitic hatred.” He declared, “No crime can eradicate memory. The never-ending fight against the deadly poison of hatred is our primary duty.”
Local officials have pledged to replant the olive tree “as soon as possible” to preserve Halimi’s memory and stand firm against hate.
Halimi, just 23 at the time, was abducted in January 2006 by a gang of around 20 individuals and tortured for three weeks in a housing estate in Bagneux before succumbing to his injuries en route to hospital. His murder shocked France and became a grim symbol of antisemitic violence.
The latest vandalism comes amid renewed concerns over surging antisemitism in France, particularly since the October 7, 2023 Hamas attack on Israel and the subsequent war in Gaza. France’s Jewish community — among the largest in the world — has reported an alarming rise in antisemitic incidents: 436 cases in 2022 skyrocketed to 1,676 in 2023, with 1,570 more recorded last year.
The case serves as a chilling reminder that the battle against antisemitic hatred in France remains far from over.
