Religious discrimination Leisure park boss refuses entry to 150 Israeli children
In France, the manager of an amusement park has refused entry to 150 Israeli children and teenagers, sparking outrage. The park manager was arrested.
22.08.2025, 20:48
22.08.2025, 23:18
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- In the French Pyrenees, the manager of a leisure park refused to allow 150 Israeli children and young people onto the grounds.
- The park manager justified the refusal of access with "personal convictions".
- The public prosecutor's office is investigating and the man is facing several years in prison for religious discrimination.
Interior Minister Bruno Retailleau spoke of a "serious" incident on the BFMTV television station on Friday, which "does not correspond to our idea of the Republic" and "human dignity". The director of the park in Porté-Puymorens in the French Pyrenees is under investigation by the public prosecutor's office and faces several years in prison for religious discrimination.
The incident took place on Thursday. According to the responsible investigators in Perpignan, the Israeli children and young people aged between eight and 16 were not allowed into the park, although they had had "reservations for some time". The park manager justified the refusal of admission with "personal convictions".
Discrimination on religious grounds
The 52-year-old was arrested on the same day. He is accused of "discrimination on religious grounds" in the provision of services, as the public prosecutor's office explained. The maximum sentence for this is three years in prison.
The Israeli youths, who were spending their vacation in Spain, were taken to another location in France in three buses after the incident, the public prosecutor's office explained. The gendarmerie had ensured their safety. Porté-Puymorens is close to the border with Spain.
Interior Minister Retailleau said on BFMTV about the incident that he hoped the judiciary would take "very strict" action in the case. "We must not let anything get away with it", he added, adding that anti-Semitic incidents were currently "exploding" in France.
According to the latest figures from the Ministry of the Interior in Paris, a total of 504 anti-Semitic incidents were recorded in France between January and May. Although this represents a decrease of 24% compared to the same period last year, it is more than twice as many incidents as in the same period in 2023 (up 134%).
Tensions between France and Israel are currently high due to the Gaza war.
