Paris – French anti-terrorist officials are investigating after a frightening letter was sent to the Chief Rabbi of Lyon, Richard Wertenschlag.
Subscribe to our Daily Roundup Email
The August 10 letter was sent to the main synagogue in Lyon along with pictures of Jewish children being marched into Nazi concentration camps.
THE AFP reports (http://bit.ly/RCyHKJ) that the letter stated, “More and more frequently we are having ideas imposed on us that have as their goal to apologise for the Jew, the so-called Shoah (holocaust), the evil Palestinians. From now on we will punish a Jew … each time that you go on television to complain.” The author(s) of the letter also said that the photos were intended to “prove that the Jews were well treated in Germany, fed and lodged with summer camp for the children.”
Rabbi Wertenschlag told the AFP he reported it to authorities because of its alarming message. “One could brush it off as the work of one rogue individual but we have to envisage the worst scenario — prevention is better than a cure,” the Rabbi said.
He added that given the “certain climate” in France, it was not unusual to receive anti-Semitic or anti-Zionist communications because “you see many expressions of a new anti-Semitism that is surfacing.” He did note, however, that this was the first time he had received a letter which openly threatened Jews.