Police discover nine pig heads outside mosques in Paris

PARIS: Police said on Tuesday that at least nine pigs’ heads were discovered outside several mosques in the Paris region that has sparked alarm over rising Islamophobia in west.

“Pig heads had been left in front of certain mosques… Four in Paris and five in the inner suburbs,” Paris police chief Laurent Nunez said at a press conference. He said that police could expect the possibility of finding more”.

There may be parallels with past incidents linked to “foreign interference” Nunez said, calling for “extreme caution”.

In early June, three Serbs were charged over the vandalism of Jewish sites in a case investigators suspect was backed by Russia.

Three pigs’ heads were found in front of mosques in Paris’s 15th and 20th arrondissements, and another in a suitcase in the 18th, said the prosecutor’s office.

The last name of the French president, Emmanuel Macron, had been painted in blue at one of the locations, it added.

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The consumption of pork is considered haram — forbidden in Islam — as the meat is considered to be impure.

Police have launched an investigation for incitement to hatred aggravated by discrimination based on race or religion, said Nunez, who described the acts as “despicable”.

France is home to the largest Muslim community in the European Union, as well as the largest Jewish population outside Israel and the United States.

Several EU nations have reported a spike in “anti-Muslim hatred” and “anti-Semitism” since the Gaza war started in October 2023, according to the European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights.

Fighters from Palestinian organisation Hamas launched an attack in Israel from Gaza on October 7, 2023. Israel has responded with a relentless assault on the Hamas-run Gaza Strip.

The incidents in the Paris region sparked a wave of condemnation from political and community leaders.

Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo denounced the “racist acts”, saying that the city of Paris had taken legal action.

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For his part, Interior Minister Bruno Retailleau called the deeds “outrageous” and “absolutely unacceptable”.

“I want our Muslim compatriots to be able to practise their faith in peace,” he said.

Chems-Eddine Hafiz, the rector of the Grand Mosque of Paris, denounced the “Islamophobic acts” as “a new and sad stage in the rise of anti-Muslim hatred”.

Bassirou Camara, head of anti-discrimination group Addam, told AFP he feared an escalation.

“We have been raising the alarm for months and we are not being heard,” Camara said.

“What will be the next step? Throwing pig heads at worshippers or physically assaulting them?”, he said.

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Similar incidents have targeted mosques and Muslim associations elsewhere in France in recent years, including a pig’s head left outside a Muslim association in the northern Pas-de-Calais region in 2024.