France: 2 minor boys accused of raping 12-year-old Jewish girl

Two adolescent boys in a Paris suburb have been given preliminary charges of raping a 12-year-old girl and religion-motivated violence, French authorities said Wednesday. A Jewish leader said the girl was assaulted due to her Jewish identity.

The attack elicited widespread shock and concern, notably after a surge in antisemitic acts in France since the start of the Israel-Hamas war.

The girl reported a rape in the town of Courbevoie on Saturday, and three boys, aged 12 and 13, were detained, according to the regional prosecutor’s office.

It said two of the boys were given multiple preliminary charges on Tuesday, including aggravated gang rape on a minor younger than 15, violence and public insult motivated by religion, death threats, attempted extortion and unlawfully recording or broadcasting sexual images.

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According to victim protection laws, the prosecutor’s office did not disclose the girl’s identity or faith, as is customary in France when it comes to hate crimes.

Later, in an interview with French channel BFM, attorney and Jewish leader Elie Korchia revealed that the girl is Jewish and that during the attack, there was mention of Palestine. Referring to the girl’s rape as having occurred “because she’s Jewish,” French Prime Minister Gabriel Attal posted on X, the previous Twitter platform, calling it an antisemitic incident.

Political leaders across the spectrum denounced the attack. France is in the midst of a blitz campaign for snap parliamentary elections on June 30 and July 7, and the frontrunner far-right National Rally party has sought to make security and immigration key campaign issues.

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Interior Minister Gérald Darmanin described the attack as “awful,” and said police were limited in their ability to prevent such violence. “It’s a problem of the parents … of authority. It’s a problem of society as a whole,” he said on BFM television.

On Wednesday evening, hundreds of people gathered in front of Paris City Hall to protest antisemitism. Many in the crowd were holding placards, including some bearing the slogan “raped because she’s Jewish.”