Is the Wagner Group responsible for the wave of antisemitism in France?

Prosecutors in France are investigating Russia's possible involvement in the graffiti spraying of more than 200 Stars of David on buildings across the country, following which antisemitic acts have sharply increased.

The mysterious appearance of the Stars of David on several buildings last week sowed concern in France, where tensions have risen since the October 7 Hamas attack on Israel. France is home to some of the largest Muslim and Jewish populations in Europe.

French prosecutors said yesterday that they are investigating whether a person who does not live in France at all may be responsible for the graffiti. The police arrested a man and a woman, born in Moldova, who were caught painting the Star of David on a building in Paris late last month. Prosecutors said they uncovered a conversation, apparently in Russian, on the couple's phone in which they were instructed to spray paint the star in exchange for payment.

The phone search helped the investigators link the couple to two other people, who were also caught spraying Stars of David in Paris, and it seems that they were also in contact with the same person who is abroad, the prosecutors said. The couple in question, who left the country a day after their investigation, was accompanied by another person who took pictures, prosecutors added. 

At the same time, a network of bots that prosecutors believe is controlled by the Russian mercenary group Wagner Force promoted photos of the spray-painted stars on social media, a French official said. 

No comment from Russia

A spokesman for the Russian Embassy in Paris declined to comment. The first account that posted the photos on X (formerly Twitter), originated in Russia, the official added, saying that activity was particularly intense on the giant social media platform and included thousands of reposts almost immediately after the images first appeared. "It was completely artificial," the official said. 

French authorities have recorded 1,100 antisemitic acts over the past month and have arrested 502 people, according to Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin. "The police do not lack the means to arrest those who attack the French Jews and [to] bring them to justice," he said.