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In France, which is home to the world's third largest Jewish community after Israel and the United States, anti-Semitic incidents had reached a worrying level, according to French Interior Minister Hortefeux. During the first nine months of 2009, the number of recorded incidents had more than doubled, compared with the same period the previous year. At a meeting with the heads of the Jewish employers and employees' union in France, Hortefeux stated that he intended to appoint a special coordinator for fighting racism and anti-Semitism, which he called "a poison to our republic." 704 racist and anti-Semitic incidents have occurred between January and September, compared with only 350 incidents in 2008.
Hortefeux awarded the union with a prize for its efforts against racism and anti-Semitism. Richard Prasquier, the head of CRIF, France's Jewish umbrella organization, was quoted as saying earlier this year that "anti-Semitism is back" and that although France itself was not an anti-Semitic country, "there is a climate of hatred against Jews that manifests itself through insults and often physical attacks."
At his meeting with the Jewish union leaders, the interior minister also condemned also denounced the "vile and racist desecration" of a mosque in the town of Castres. Police say the swastika in black paint and slogans including the Hitler salute "Sieg Heil" and racist slogans such as "France to the French" and "White Power" had been scrawled on the mosque. Hortefeux said any person found responsible for the desecration should be "severely punished."
