The affair caused a stir in France. Two 13-year-old teenagers were indicted on Tuesday for gang rape, death threats, insults and anti-Semitic violence against a 12-year-old girl in Courbevoie (Hauts-de-Seine). The minor said she was approached by three teenagers and dragged into a shed while she was in a park near her home with a friend. The suspects hit her and “imposed anal and vaginal penetration on him, fellatio, while uttering death threats and anti-Semitic remarks”, specified this source.
“This anti-Semitic rape is a continuation of a climate hostile to Jews, fueled in particular by irresponsible political declarations, aimed at fanning the embers and fueling hatred of Jews for several months,” accused in a press release We will live, a citizen collective founded the day after the bloody Hamas attack on October 7.
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In Belgium, the number of anti-Semitic acts has exploded since the Hamas invasion followed by the Israeli response. Acts of attacks and harassment committed by ever younger individuals are also observed, mainly in Brussels schools, according to several Jewish associations. Misinformation on social networks, simplistic shortcuts and group effect: different factors explain what can push minors, sometimes very young, to adopt such behaviors.
Young people constantly faced with invective and hatred
According to child psychiatrist Jean-Yves Hayez, “young people are influenced by all kinds of toxic sources.” “Minors need a model of identification that they will no longer find among their parents, teachers or educators, but through political figures and influencers who will spread hate speech on social networks,” he explains. “With social networks, young people are constantly confronted with invective, hatred and violence without filter. The risk is therefore great that they will agree with these comments, especially since the group effect also plays a role.”
A contagion effect
According to him, “reproaches against the State of Israel are causing a vicious slide towards anti-Semitism against all Jewish people. This results in a contagion effect among the youngest who will take simplistic shortcuts and take on young Jews who have nothing to do with the conflict.”
The Courbevoie rape takes a political turn
In France, the Courbevoie rape affair takes a political turn. Ten days before the legislative election, all the parties are trying to recover this affair to “pamper” their electorate. According to Jean-Yves Hayez, this sordid news item concentrates several factors. “Young people aged 12 to 14 are just going through puberty and do not control their sexual urges well. The young Jewish girl who was raped therefore represents the State of Israel which had to be punished, but also a response to their sexual urges. Unfortunately, more and more young people are completely losing their bearings, which can result in this type of drama which will be denounced by 99% of the population while one percent will believe that they are avengers and not attackers. This last speech will take precedence in their eyes”, he concludes.
