Russian chief rabbi calls for French Jewish exodus if Le Pen wins election

The umbrella organization representing French Jewry has urged the Jewish community to reject not only Le Pen, but also far-left candidate Jean-Luc Mélenchon, referring to both as “candidates of hatred.”

“Chief Rabbi of Russia Berel Lazar has called for Jews to flee France if candidate Marine Le Pen of the National Front wins Sunday’s presidential elections.

“If Marine Le Pen is elected president of France, the Jews must leave,” Rabbi Lazar said while addressing this year’s Limmud FSU (former Soviet Union) conference in Moscow.

Limmud is an organization that provides an educational experience on Jewish heritage to Jews around the world, with a large focus on the former Soviet Union, through seminars, discussions, lectures and workshops.

“The situation (in France) is very worrying not only because of immigrants, but also because the general population is heading toward radicalization,” Lazar said. “The best example of this is the rise of extreme-right parties.”

Le Pen, who has been labeled by some as the “Donald Trump of France” for calling to tackle radical Islamic terrorism, is a controversial figure among French Jews. Although recognizing the “dangerous situation in which Jews in France live” to the Jewish Chronicle, she called on the Jewish community to participate in a joint struggle in combating radical Islam by not wearing the kippah, a Jewish religious skullcap, in public.

Her contentious positions include support for banning dual citizenship of French citizens as well as her refusal to accept any responsibility for the French Vichy Regime‘s help in rounding up Jews to be sent to Nazi death camps.

CRIF, the umbrella organization representing French Jewry, has urged the Jewish community to refuse to cast their ballots not only for Le Pen, but also for far-left candidate Jean-Luc Mélenchon, referring to both as “candidates of hatred.”

Unlike Le Pen, Mélenchon has been a huge critic of Israel and lambasted French Jews who support Israel.

“France is the opposite of aggressive minorities that lecture to the rest of the country,” he has said, referring to French Zionist Jews.

CRIF President Francis Kalifat on Friday called upon the community to “vote with your soul and your conscience for the candidate of your choice, but vote against the extremes,” according to the European Jewish Congress.

By: Jonathan Benedek, World Israel News.

CRIFFranceLe PenRabbi Berel Lazar