Macron asks “not to give in” to anti-Semitism in the face of possible incidents due to the soccer match against Israel

MADRID 14 Nov. () –

The President of France, Emmanuel Macron, has called on people to “not give in” to anti-Semitic behavior due to the possibility of incidents occurring during the soccer match this Wednesday in Paris between the French team and that of Israel.

“We will not give in to anti-Semitism anywhere and violence, even in the French Republic, will never prevail, nor will intimidation,” Macron said before the microphones of the BFMTV news network a few hours before the start of the match. A week ago there were altercations in the streets of Amsterdam after a match between Ajax and Maccabi Tel Aviv.

Dozens of people were arrested and several were injured in a series of violent incidents due to clashes between pro-Palestinian protesters and Israeli fans, classified as “anti-Semitic” by both the Government of the Netherlands and Israel.

The French Minister of the Interior, Bruno Retaillaeau, already stressed last week that the Executive had ruled out changes in the organization of this Wednesday’s football match, alleging that it would mean “abdicating in the face of threats of violence and anti-Semitism”, although he did promise to reinforce the security measures in Paris so that the match could be played normally.