Zionist movement France
Zionist movement and Jewish communal organisations in France
Zionist movement in France is the organised support for Jewish national aspirations and the State of Israel among French Jewish institutions and communities, centred in Paris.
The movement draws on historical involvement by the Rothschild family in French Jewish leadership and communal causes.[1] Post-war structures include the Conseil Représentatif des Institutions Juives de France (CRIF), founded in 1944 to protect Jewish rights.[2] The Fond Social Juif Unifie (FSJU) coordinates social, educational and cultural activities with the explicit goal "To help Israel".[3]
A Travel Guide to Jewish Europe notes:
- The head of the Rothschild family was Mayer Amschel Rothschild of Frankfurt (1744-1812), who had five sons. They were Amschel Mayer (1773-1836), who stayed in Frankfurt; Solomon Mayer (1774-1855), who went to Vienna; Nathan Mayer (1777-1855), to London; Karl Mayer (1788-1855), to Naples; and James Jacob (1792-1868), to Paris. The French branch of the family was founded when James, the youngest of the sons, settled in Paris in 1812. As an agent of his brother Nathan, James established the firm of Rothschild Freres. Financially, he aided the Bourbon and Orleans families, the kings of France, and Napoleon III. From then on, apart from its banking activities, the Rothschild family was active in the French Jewish community.
- James de Rothschild built the Rothschild Hospital, which still stands today in Paris. An early railroad entrepreneur, James helped set up many government railroad lines. The Rothschilds financed the main rail networks in France, including the Chemin de Fer du Nord.
- The Rothschild family assumed positions of responsibility in the French Jewish leadership, holding respected posts. Baron Guy de Rothschild was president of Fonds Social Juif Unifié (FSJU). He was succeeded by his son, David Rothschild. The late Baron Alain de Rothschild was president of the Consistoire and headed the Representative Council of Jewish Organizations in France (CRIF). Baron Elie de Rothschild was active in the French United Jewish Appeal.[4]
Major Zionist bodies listed in the travel guide include the Fédération des Organisations Sionistes de France, Jewish Agency, K.K.L. (Jewish National Fund), WIZO and others, many sharing premises in Paris.[5] The guide notes "a number of Sephardic and Zionist groups" alongside international bodies.[6]
Major Zionist and Jewish communal organisations
- Fédération des Organisations Sionistes de France, 17 bis rue de Paradis, 75010 Paris. Tel: 48-24-03-44.[7]
- Femmes Pionnieres, 12 rue de l’Echiquier, 75010 Paris. Tel: 47-70-21-75.[8]
- Jewish Agency, Francais, 140 blvd. Malesherbes, 75017 Paris. Tel: 47-63-00-68.[9]
- K.K.L. (Jewish National Fund / Keren Kayemeth Leisrael France), 11 rue du 4 Septembre, 75002 Paris. Tel: 42-86-88-88.[10]
- WIZO-France (Women’s International Zionist Organization), 54 rue de Paradis, 75010 Paris. Tel: 48-01-97-70.[11]
- O.R.T. / ORT-France, 44 avenue Victor Hugo, 75116 Paris and 10 Villa d’Eylau, 75116 Paris. Tel: 45-00-74-22.[12]
- B’nai B’rith-France, 9 rue de Chaillot, 75116 Paris. Tel: 42-80-03-30.[13]
- American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee-France, 5 av. Malignon, 75008 Paris. Tel: 56-59-79-79.[14]
- World Jewish Congress - France, 78 avenue des Champs-Elysées, 75008 Paris. Tel: 43-59-94-63.[15]
- Consistoire Central / Union des Communautés Juives de France, 19 rue St-Georges, 75009 Paris. Tel: 49-77-88-00.[16]
- Conseil Représentatif des Institutions Juives de France (CRIF), 39 rue Broca, 75005 Paris. Tel: 42-17-11-11.[17]
- Fond Social Juif Unifie (FSJU) / L’Appel Unifie Juif de France (Keren Hayessod - Appel Unifié pour Israël), 39 rue Broca, Paris. Tel: 42-17-10-10.[18]
- Lubavitch / Beth Loubavitch (over 40 Chabad centers), 8 rue Lamartine, 75009 Paris. Tel: 45-26-87-60.[19]
- Christian Friends of Israel France
- L’Organisation Sioniste Mondiale en France
- Siona[20]
- Association France-Israël
- Union des patrons et professionnels juifs de France (UPJF)
- Association des élus locaux amis d’Israël (Adelmad)
Youth organisations and community centres
- B’nei Akiva - France, 28 rue Bichat, 75010 Paris. Tel: 42-40-56-00.[21]
- BBYO - France, 5 bis rue de Rochechouart, 75009 Paris. Tel: 40-82-91-00.[22]
- Lubavitch Youth, Beth Lubavitch, 8 rue Lamartine, 75009 Paris.[23]
- Centre Bernard Lazare, 10 rue Saint-Claude, 75003 Paris.[24]
- Centre Communautaire Maison des Jeunes, 5 rue de Rochechouart, 75009 Paris.[25]
- Centre Edmond Fleg, 8 bis rue de l’Eperon, 75006 Paris.[26]
- Centre Israel Jeffroykin, 68 rue de la Flie Maricourt, 75011 Paris.[27]
- Centre Rachi, 30 boulevard Port-Royal, 75005 Paris.[28]
- Centre Rambam, 19-21 rue Galvani, 75017 Paris.[29]
Other groups
Alliance Israélite Universelle, Armée Juive, Union des étudiants juifs de France, LICRA, Parizer Haynt.
See also
- Fédération des Organisations Sionistes de France
- Keren Kayemeth Leisrael France
- L’Organisation Sioniste Mondiale en France
External links
Resources
- Serge Halimi & Pierre Rimbert The growing power of France's pro-Israel lobby Le Monde diplomatique - English edition, September 2025
- Ali Abunimah French resist effort to censor criticism of Zionism The Electronic Intifada, 4 Mar 2019
- Natasha Soffer-Roth For these French Jews, anti-racism cannot succeed without anti-Zionism +972 Magazine, 14 Aug 2023
- Evan Jones The Israel Lobby and French Politics Counterpunch, 9 Jul 2014
- Murad Jandali This Is How France Uses Its Legislative Institutions to Protect Israel's Interests صحيفة الاستقلال, undated
- The difficult awakening for French Jews as Israel drifts toward ultra-nationalism Le Monde.fr, 30 Mar 2023
- Roger Garaudy The Israeli-Zionist Lobby in France Rafed.net, undated
- France's Jewish community feels the strain as Gaza war deepens divides The Parliament Magazine, 8 Oct 2025
- F Eytan The complexity of the Relations between european Jewry and israel Jewish Political Studies Review, 2017
- The Israeli Lobby Institute for Palestine Studies, undated
- From an unsolvable dispute to a unifying compromise OpenEdition Journals / Bulletin du Centre de recherche français à Jérusalem, 2009
- Zionist and other Jewish organizations in France (Fond 186) The EHRI Portal, undated
- A major rift erupted in the French Jewish community following a harsh condemnation of the Israeli government by the famous reform rabbi J Street, 2 Jun 2025
- In France, a celebrity flame war about Israel highlights shifting attitudes The Times of Israel, 3 Feb 2024
- Cautiously hopeful about the fate of the Zionist lobby Jewish Voice for Liberation, 17 Apr 2026
- Marc Hecker Les groupes pro-israéliens en France : une typologie. Dans Politique étrangère 2005/2 (Été), pages 401 à 410.
Notes
- ↑ A Travel Guide to Jewish Europe (pp.43, 46)
- ↑ A Travel Guide to Jewish Europe (p.46)
- ↑ A Travel Guide to Jewish Europe (p.46)
- ↑ A Travel Guide to Jewish Europe (p. 46)
- ↑ A Travel Guide to Jewish Europe (p.47)
- ↑ A Travel Guide to Jewish Europe (p.47)
- ↑ A Travel Guide to Jewish Europe (p.47)
- ↑ A Travel Guide to Jewish Europe (p.47)
- ↑ A Travel Guide to Jewish Europe (p.47)
- ↑ A Travel Guide to Jewish Europe (p.47)
- ↑ A Travel Guide to Jewish Europe (p.47)
- ↑ A Travel Guide to Jewish Europe (p.47)
- ↑ A Travel Guide to Jewish Europe (p.47)
- ↑ A Travel Guide to Jewish Europe (p.47)
- ↑ A Travel Guide to Jewish Europe (p.47)
- ↑ A Travel Guide to Jewish Europe (p.46)
- ↑ A Travel Guide to Jewish Europe (p.46)
- ↑ A Travel Guide to Jewish Europe (p.46)
- ↑ A Travel Guide to Jewish Europe (p.47) Lubavitch France
- ↑ https://www.facebook.com/SionaOfficial/
- ↑ A Travel Guide to Jewish Europe (p.48)
- ↑ A Travel Guide to Jewish Europe (p.48)
- ↑ A Travel Guide to Jewish Europe (p.48)
- ↑ A Travel Guide to Jewish Europe (p.48)
- ↑ A Travel Guide to Jewish Europe (p.48)
- ↑ A Travel Guide to Jewish Europe (p.48)
- ↑ A Travel Guide to Jewish Europe (p.48)
- ↑ A Travel Guide to Jewish Europe (p.48)
- ↑ A Travel Guide to Jewish Europe (p.48)