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(Worthy News) – Nearly 40% of French Jews are considering immigration to Israel after a far-left, pro-Hamas party won the most seats in France’s recent elections, Israel’s Committee for Immigration, Absorption, and Diaspora Affairs has been told.
Triggering a period of immense political turmoil for France, and for French Jews in particular, not only did the far-right Rassemblement National first win a historic victory in Europe’s parliamentary elections last month, but then the far-left La France Insoumise (France Unbowed) unexpectedly received the most seats in the country’s legislative elections on July 7.
In a statement to Israel’s Committee for Immigration, Absorption, and Diaspora Affairs on Monday, Ariel Kandel, CEO of the Qualita organization, which serves French immigrants in Israel, said that although France’s far-right and far-left parties are both steeped in antisemitic history, today’s French Jews are more concerned about the far-left taking power.
“[The far-right Rassemblement National] platform included banning the wearing of kippahs in public, issues with approving kosher slaughter, and creating a problematic climate for those with French-Israeli dual citizenships,” Kandel told the committee. “However, these seemed like ‘small issues’ that could be lived with were [the party] to combat the immigration crisis and increase security.”
Kandel explained that, especially in light of the massive global outpouring of antisemitism and pro-Hamas sentiment that followed the Oct. 7 attack on Israel, the far-left is currently more worrying for French Jews.
“These are people denying the massacre of October 7, defining Hamas as a resistance movement, waving more Palestinian flags than French ones in their rallies. This is a reality the community finds very hard to accept. It’s very dramatic. It’s bad for France and bad for the Jews,”
Kandel said. “Jews were willing to pay the price of voting for a party with antisemitic roots as long as they felt safer. Some of them even said it proudly,” Kandel added.
Nearly 70% of Jews currently feel unsafe in France, Kandel went on to report. “Aliyah has three main reasons: Zionism, economy, and antisemitism,” he said. “Some 68% of French Jews report they don’t feel safe, so they’re looking for different options…People are looking for belonging, and Israel provides that for them.”
In particular, Kandel emphasized that 38% of French Jews are considering moving to Israel. “If you narrow it down, 13% of the community are seriously considering it [aliyah], which is roughly 60,000 people who could arrive in Israel tomorrow morning,” Kandel said.