View source for Ligue de Défense Juive


According to the ''[[New York Times]]'':

:The group models itself loosely on the [[Jewish Defense League]] in the United States, an organization founded by Rabbi [[Meir Kahane]], who was assassinated in 1990, and whose Kach party was banned in Israel as racist. The American group has been listed by the Federal Bureau of Investigation as a terrorist organization. The French interior minister, Bernard Cazeneuve, warned in July against “excesses” of the French League, prompting speculation that he was considering banning the group.

:The French news media has characterized the French League as a dangerous vigilante group, though experts say it is small, disorganized and less militant than its American counterpart.

:Founded in France in 2003 by former members of [[Betar]], the youth movement linked to the Zionist leader [[Ze’ev Jabotinsky]], the French League has roughly 400 members. They are predominantly young Sephardic men from working-class suburbs, some trained in [[krav maga]], a hand-to-hand martial art used by the Israeli military. Critics accuse the group of advocating violence and racism, noting a past entry on the League’s Facebook page that referred to Arabs as “rats.”<ref>Dan Bilefsky [https://www.nytimes.com/2014/08/07/world/europe/militant-jewish-group-confronts-protesters-in-a-tense-france.html A Militant Jewish Group Confronts Pro-Palestinian Protesters in France], ''[[New York Times]]'' Aug. 6, 2014.</ref>