Halimi died because he was Jewish

[Behind the Aegis]

The monstrous torture inflicted upon Ilan Halimi has deeply distressed France. The inhumanity of the cold-blooded acts committed against him are incomprehensible. However, public opinion in France has raised questions regarding how the media and politicians rushed to classify the crime as anti-Semitic.

Some consider that the crime was too hastily identified as anti-Semitic. Previous affairs which the highest French authorities immediately denounced as anti-Semitic turned out to be manipulations. In one instance, a young girl who pretended to be Jewish falsely claimed she was attacked in the Paris Metro by young hoodlums from the suburbs. In another case, in which a Jewish social center was set afire, the arsonist was a Jew.

Another element which must also be taken into account is the current distrust by the French public of the judicial system, in the wake of the recent uproar over a prominent case in which a young magistrate imprisoned several innocent people who were accused of pedophilia for several years.

Many French people consider that a non-Jew could have been victim of such savagery by the same gang. In addition, there is a widespread feeling among the French that if Ilan Halimi hadn't been Jewish, the entire affair would not have created such a stir in the media and on the political scene.

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