Teenagers charged in France for allegedly planning to attack Jewish targets

Published on: 06/22/2024 – 09:57

1 minute

Although no details about the two men have been released, French counterterrorism investigators have expressed concern about the young age of some suspects arrested in recent months for planning militant attacks.

The 19-year-old young man was charged with “terrorist conspiracy” to commit attacks and “acquiring and possessing weapons for a terrorist enterprise”, said the judicial source, speaking under cover of anonymity.

The young person, aged under 18, was arrested on June 13, the source said.

The two men made contact on social networks and were planning a “violent action targeting Jewish targets in particular,” the source said without giving details of the plot.

Counterterrorism investigators say a growing number of young people have been arrested in recent months for planning attacks.

“This is a necessarily worrying phenomenon,” anti-terrorism prosecutor Olivier Christen said on Wednesday during the hearing of evidence.

French politicians also condemned the growing number of attacks against the country's Jewish community, the largest outside Israel and the United States.

Outrage was expressed following the rape of a 12-year-old Jewish girl in a park in the Paris suburbs last Saturday. Two 13-year-old boys have been accused of rape and anti-Semitic insults.

Several protest rallies have taken place in Paris and other French cities over the case, as France prepares for national elections in which the far-right National Rally party is expected to make significant gains.

(AFP)