French politician calls for legal action against French chief rabbi

SEPTEMBER 1, 2024 18:45

Updated: SEPTEMBER 1, 2024 20:36

Grand Rabbi of France Haim Korsia gestures as he takes part in an interreligious meeting on the parvis of Notre Dame de Paris cathedral in Paris on August 4, 2024, on the sidelines of the Paris 2024 Olympic Games. (photo credit: THIBAUD MORITZ/AFP via Getty Images) — Grand Rabbi of France Haim Korsia gestures as he takes part in an interreligious meeting on the parvis of Notre Dame de Paris cathedral in Paris on August 4, 2024, on the sidelines of the Paris 2024 Olympic Games.

(photo credit: THIBAUD MORITZ/AFP via Getty Images)

Ecological Revolution for the Living party head Aymeric Caron accused Chief Rabbi Haim Korsia of defending "war crimes in Gaza."

A far-left politician asked the Paris Public Prosecutor to take legal action against the French chief rabbi for his comments on the Israel-Hamas war.

Ecological Revolution for the Living party head Aymeric Caron charged that Chief Rabbi Haim Korsia had defended “war crimes in Gaza” during a BFMTV interview, the La France Insoumise ally said on social media.

Sources familiar with the story expect it unlikely that the issue will result in the opening of an investigation against the chief rabbi.

Korsia had defended the IDF, arguing that the military had conducted itself properly during the war. He has argued that the loss of Palestinians was the fault of Hamas, and if the terrorist organization had released all hostages there would be no war. He noted that Israel was not engaging in military action on October 6.

Member of the French Parliament for La France Insoumise (LFI) parliamentary group, Aymeric Caron (C) speaks in a megaphone as he takes part in a gathering in front of the Institute of Political Studies (Sciences Po Paris) as students occupy a building in support of Palestinians, in Paris on April 2 (credit: DIMITAR DILKOFF/AFP via Getty Images)

Far-left activists attacked Korsia for remarking that Israel should “finish the job” against Hamas and for ostensibly downplaying the deaths of Palestinian civilians.

"Nothing more than antisemitism"

France Central Consistory vice president and Marseilles Consistory president Michel Cohen Tenoudji told The Jerusalem Post on Saturday night that the defamation against Korsia was a “new line” that had been crossed.

“The political uncertainty reigning in France, with extreme parties like France Insoumise brandishing virulent anti-Zionism that is nothing more than antisemitism, is terrorizing our community, and aggravating its concerns,” said Cohen Tenoudji.

Korsia’s office declined to comment on the issue.