In front of the Beth Yaacov synagogue, in the French town of Le Grande-Motte, at least two vehicles were set on fire. One of them contained a gas cylinder and caused a large explosion and subsequent fire.
An alarming event shook the quiet town of La Grande-Motte in France this Saturday morning. In front of the Beth Jacob Synagogueat least two vehicles were set on fire, one of which contained a gas cylinder. This act caused an explosion which resulted in injuries to a municipal police officer, according to sources from the gendarmerie and the town’s mayor.
Mayor Stéphan Rossignol confirmed that A municipal police officer was injured when going to the scene of the accident. However, no details were provided about the severity of the officer’s injuries.
The seriousness of the event has provoked a rapid response from national authorities. The outgoing Minister of the Interior, Gerald Darmaninused the social network X to strongly condemn what he described as a “manifestly criminal” act.
Darmanin assured the Government’s full support to the Jewish community and the municipality, emphasizing that, by order of the President Emmanuel Macronall available resources are being mobilized to locate the person responsible.
The importance of the incident is reflected in the Minister Darmanin’s decision to personally visit the scene of the incident in the afternoon, accompanied by the outgoing prime minister, Gabriel Attal.
How the explosion happened
City surveillance cameras captured images of an individual in the act of setting vehicles on fire in front of the synagogue. The gendarmerie has confirmed that two doors of the religious building were damaged as a result of the fire.
The Firefighters, who were the first to be called to the scene, alerted the gendarmerie around 8:30, local time, while the prefecture of the Hérault department has announced that the prefect will offer a press conference at the scene at 11:30.
This incident has generated deep concern in the local and national community, highlighting the importance of security in places of worship and the need to fight acts of intolerance.
