While the Nation paid tribute this Wednesday morning at Les Invalides to the 42 French victims of the massacres of October 7 in Israel, a ceremony in memory of the victims was organized at the beginning of the evening at the Israeli center of Levallois, which has one of the largest Jewish communities in France.
For four months, the religious and cultural center has increased its actions, relentlessly demanding the release of the hostages, whose faces are displayed on the facade of the building on rue Baudin.
A non-religious ceremony in which elected officials from the commune but also personalities from beyond Levallois participated, for example the presence of the imam of Drancy, Hassen Chalghoumi.
“We are still haunted by these terrible images but we must constantly repeat that we will not allow ourselves to be invaded by hatred,” began Philippe Cohen, president of the Jewish religious and cultural association of Levallois (ACCIL), then repeating the words of Emmanuel Macron pronounced earlier: “Those who kill out of hatred will always find in front of them those who are ready to die for love”.
For Rabbi Chalom Lellouche, if this step of contemplation is necessary, while “France is the only country in the world to pay tribute to its nationals killed on October 7”, it must also be accompanied by a “diagnosis”.
“Our lives have been dramatically turned upside down and we must show courage all together, Jews and non-Jews,” he underlines before continuing: “Anti-Semitism is not our only fight, because when we target a Jew , we aim for democracy through it.”
“This moment of national unity is essential”
He thus draws a parallel between the massacre at the Jewish school in Toulouse in 2012, during which a teacher, Jonathan Sandler, lost his life, and the assassinations of Samuel Paty and Dominique Bernard, which according to him could have been avoided .
“Silence is condemnable.
We no longer have the right to be silent,” he says.
Silence is not the position chosen by the mayor (LR) of Levallois, Agnès Pottier-Dumas.
“This moment of national unity is essential when events overwhelm us.
But tomorrow, we will have to overcome this emotion to seriously question ourselves about what happened on October 7,” she insists.
For the councilor, “commemoration cannot be the only answer”.
“What do we do when Israel defends its land and its citizens?
Our democracies must be more courageous.
And, if we do not have the courage to take this leap, let us be careful not to judge Israel today,” underlines Agnès Pottier-Dumas, who has not stopped pleading for the right of freedom for four months. Hebrew State to defend itself, while Israeli strikes on Gaza, of which civilians are the first victims, divide the international community.