Jean-Luc Mélenchon held his first official meeting in mainland France on Wednesday evening. He was acclaimed by some 1,200 activists, according to the organizers, in Roubaix.
The city of 96,000 souls voted 52.5% for him in the first round of the last presidential election. He addressed the situation in Gaza and called on Roubais residents to vote massively for the LFI list in the European elections. He pretended to wonder: "Why, at 70, did I become anti-Semitic?" "It's racist to speak like that!" he replied, aping his opponents. "You will have allowed the criminals and their friends to score a point against us,' he lectured. "If you let the lists of supporters turn a blind eye to crimes or approve of them, if you let these lists prevail on June 9, it is your own dignities that you will offend."