STORY: French police shot dead an armed man who set fire to a synagogue in the northwestern city of Rouen early on Friday (May 17).
Officers opened fire when the assailant threw an iron bar at them and threatened them with a knife as he left the building.
The synagogue had smoke billowing from it, a Rouen city official said. The fire has since been brought under control.
The synagogue's Rabbi Chmouel Lubecki said he was left in "great shock" after the attempted arson attack, adding that his wife was present at the time.
"She heard gunshots and screams. She thought it was the street that was lively, and then she saw smoke coming from the synagogue, so she immediately went down, she helped the firefighters get in the synagogue and that was it. We had a great fright. / Tonight is Shabbat. It is important to light the Shabbat candles to show that we are not afraid and that we continue to practice our Judaism despite the circumstances."
The synagogue suffered extensive damage, including to its furniture, but no one was harmed, said the city's mayor.
The attacker's identity and motive were unclear.
Aurore Berge is the Minister for Gender Equality and Anti-discrimination.
"The people who commit these crimes are condemned, and that is extremely important for the people who could be victims, who could be affected, to tell themselves that the state, the government is systematically and permanently by their side in this fight."
France, like many countries across Europe, has seen a huge spike in antisemitic acts since Hamas' October 7 attack on Israel and Israel's invasion of Gaza in response.
France hosts the Summer Olympic Games in just over two months.
It recently raised its alert status to the highest level against a complex geopolitical backdrop in the Middle East and Europe's eastern flank.
