Feb. 7 (UPI) — French President Emmanuel Macron presided over a ceremonial tribute Wednesday to honor the memories of the French victims of the Oct.7. Hamas attack on Israel.
The outdoor ceremony was held on the grounds of the Invalides memorial building in Paris and was attended by the families of French victims of the Hamas attack. Empty chairs represented each of those killed or still missing.
Macron called the attack the “biggest anti-Semitic massacre of our century” and “barbarism … fed by anti-Semitism,” French news outlets reported.
Hamas attackers killed 42 French civilians and kidnapped several more, three of whom remain missing and whom French officials believe are hostages in Gaza.
The victims were memorialized in photographs displayed during the ceremony, an X video shows. Many of the family members were flown to the ceremony at the government’s expense.
Macron said France will continue to fight to liberate its three citizens believed to still be held captive by Hamas and never will submit to “rampant and uninhibited anti-Semitism,” French news sources reported.
French news also reported anti-Semitic acts in France were four times greater in 2023 than a year prior.
The memorial ceremony was held exactly four months following the Oct. 7 Hamas attack.
Israel’s embassy in France sent several representatives to attend the memorial.
