In another shocking display of growing anti-Jewish violence in Europe, a rabbi in France was violently assaulted twice in one week, once in the upscale seaside town of Deauville and again days later in Neuilly-sur-Seine, a wealthy suburb of Paris.

The second, and more brutal, attack took place on June 6. Rabbi Elie Lemmel was seated at an outdoor café when a 28-year-old Palestinian man suddenly hurled a chair directly into his face. The attacker was immediately arrested and taken into custody.

According to police, the man is in France illegally. He had previously been living in Germany under a “Duldung” status, a controversial loophole that allows rejected asylum seekers to stay if their home country refuses to take them back. He was completely unknown to French law enforcement.

The blow left Rabbi Lemmel with a severe forehead injury, requiring immediate medical attention. His son later confirmed that the rabbi was left badly shaken but had no internal injuries. “He is very shocked,” the family said. Photos circulating online show a large hematoma on the rabbi’s forehead.

Speaking to French media outlet RTL, Rabbi Lemmel described the terror of the attack:

He struck me very violently from behind. I found myself on the ground. Passersby chased him and held him down until police arrived. I have a beard and a kippah on my head. I am recognizable. I call this a crime of profiling. To find myself in such a situation in France is distressing.”

This troubling daylight assault comes just one week after Rabbi Lemmel was physically attacked by a group of three men in Deauville. That incident, which included violent blows to his abdomen and antisemitic insults shouted in a foreign language, is now under judicial investigation as a religiously motivated hate crime.

The alarming attacks reflect a broader trend in France, which is experiencing another massive wave of anti-Jewish violence not seen since the Nazi occupation. According to the French Ministry of Interior, 1,570 antisemitic acts were recorded in 2024 alone, a number that Jewish leaders say vastly underrepresents the full scale of the threat.

The profile of the latest attacker is growing concerns about the security implications of Europe’s unchecked illegal Islamic immigration. The suspect, a Palestinian benefiting from Germany’s “non-deportable” loophole, was able to enter France undetected despite being undocumented and unvetted. These bureaucratic blind spots are now being weaponized by Muslims.

France, home to Europe’s largest Jewish population, has become a frontline battleground for rising Islamic extremism, imported hatred, and state failure to protect vulnerable communities. Jewish leaders and concerned citizens are demanding answers and protection.

“How many more times must Jews be brutalized in public before governments act?” one Jewish advocacy group asked in a statement. “This isn’t about an isolated incident; it’s about a climate of impunity that is spiraling out of control.”

As Rabbi Lemmel recovers from two Islamic attacksks in just seven days, his case sends a chilling message: Being visibly Jewish in France has become a dangerous act of courage.