“I have decided not to be afraid, a Jew must not bow down in 2024”

IIt was unimaginable for Sarah Yaïche to miss this France-Israel match, Thursday November 14 at the Stade de France. Even if she directly confesses her slight ignorance of the sport – “football is not really my thing” – this 32-year-old French Jewish woman absolutely wanted to attend this meeting: “After being shocked by the images of the violence 'Amsterdam, I made the decision to go to the stadium. Quite simply because we cannot let this happen, we must not prove them right by hiding. No, I don't want to be afraid anymore. I am going there to show that whatever happens, we will remain united in the face of the rise in anti-Semitism. »

After the outbreak of anti-Semitic violence in Amsterdam, on the evening of the Europa League match between Ajax Amsterdam and Maccabi Tel-Aviv, the risk of attacks for Jewish supporters this Thursday evening at the Stade de France is real. On the set of TF1 on Tuesday, the Minister of the Interior Bruno Retailleau declared that “if there is no particular threat, zero risk does not exist”, before adding: “Measures have been taken taken before the match, during and after, near the stadium, but also on the RER and on public transport. We mobilized a lot of law enforcement, stewards and our legal resources to carry out checks, searches and pat-downs. » For the occasion, 4,000 law enforcement officers, including the Raid, and 1,600 security agents will be mobilized.

“The recent events in Amsterdam scared me”

Pierre Grundmann, 75, will also go to the match this Thursday evening. Despite himself, this Frenchman, also Jewish, does not see this meeting as a classic match. “I fear being hated and for a football match, that worries me. And of course the recent events in Amsterdam scared me, but beyond that, I am disgusted and angry. For me, it's natural to go to this match as a fan, and I shouldn't worry about my safety before going to a sporting event. »

This Thursday morning, on the France Info morning show, Paris police prefect Laurent Nuñez wanted to reassure match spectators, particularly regarding their safety around the stadium: “There is no clear threat, but that remains a high-risk match. […] What we learned from Amsterdam is that we must be present in public space, including in depth, outside the stadium. We will detect all groups of people in public spaces. » “Exceptionally, the police will be inside the stadium, in the corridors, ready to intervene,” added the prefect.

ALSO READ Anti-Semitism: in stadiums, the end of “all together” A device that Pierre Grundmann welcomes, who takes the opportunity to tell a part of his family history: “My grandmother and my aunt, then aged 16, were arrested by the French police during the Vél'd'Hiv roundup ', then interned in Drancy before being deported and killed at Auschwitz. This Thursday evening, on the way to the Stade de France, we will pass a few kilometers from Drancy and the fact that this time, the French security forces are ensuring the security of the Jews instead of interning them, for me, is is very important. »

“If we can no longer go to a football match, what will happen next? »

Michael, 45, will travel to the match with his brother. For his part, no more fearing anti-Semitic intimidation. “I decided not to be afraid,” he says. But in view of the threats present, he still refused to allow his children to accompany him. “I didn’t want to take the slightest risk…”

Like Sarah Yaïche, the recent attacks in Amsterdam motivated him all the more to go to this France-Israel meeting, “to show that we are no longer in 1940; a Jew must not bow down in 2024. If we can no longer go to a football match, what will happen next? Universities? Public transport? »

ALSO READ LFI, from anti-Semitic rhetoric to the justification of the pogromMichael, Pierre Grundmann and Sarah Yaïche are all part of a group of nearly 300 supporters coming with the No Silence association, a feminist collective created the day after October 7 to denounce the rapes committed by Hamas as a weapon of war . “It limits our risks,” slips Michael. “As I go alone, in case of problems, they can help me,” adds Pierre Grundmann. And above all it is a group of supporters. »

Safety instructions given to supporters

Mélanie Pauli-Geysse, president of the feminist association, wanted to welcome the State's decision to maintain this match “in the face of obscurantism”. “Even before the violence in Amsterdam, we wanted to go to this match. And we were already receiving threats to “hunt these Jewish whores (sic)” on social networks. » For her, going to this match is an activist act in itself. This is what Michael also thinks: “Coming is clear support in the fight against anti-Semitism. I was all the more motivated by the calls to boycott La France insoumise; the last time we boycotted Jews was during the dark hours of history…”

“I understand those who do not want to go there in the face of the desire of some to “break the Jew””, also adds Mélanie Pauli-Geysse. For the sake of “lucidity”, it does not brush aside the risk of attacks. This is why she and her association have delivered a series of advice to supporters. “For security reasons, I cannot tell you all of them. But we asked everyone to submit to searches, we gave a list of preferred routes, to avoid any ambush in particular. We also asked to avoid coming by car. »

ALSO READ The hunt for Jews returning to Amsterdam?
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Kangaroo of the day

Answer

To enable supporters to get to and from the stadium, buses from private companies in the Paris region were chartered by the association. For her part, Sarah Yaïche indicates that she was strongly advised not to wear any distinctive sign this Thursday evening. “It’s so sad, just having a star puts us in danger… So we hide it, because it could happen at any time. »

“I would like the next France-Israel match to be able to take place without the presence of 4,000 police officers,” concludes Pierre Grundmann. We must be able to live together again. »