Bias-motivated incidents in France

Incidents over time

Every incident

41 incidents, newest first.

October 2026

• Mosque in Lodève targeted with racist, Islamophobic graffiti and threats

  A mosque in Lodève was defaced with an 'Islam dehors' tag and received an envelope containing a dead bird and the inscription 'La valise ou le cercueil', prompting a citizen rally in support of the local Muslim community.

  Oct 27 · LodèveRacismReligious Discrimination1 source

• Gunman kills one, wounds four in Trappes shooting targeting people of African origin

  A man opened fire from a vehicle in Trappes, west of Paris, killing a 26-year-old man and wounding four people, including a 12-year-old girl.

  Oct 23 · TrappesRacismReligious Discrimination46 sources

• Students at Le Mans University report racist slurs, Nazi salutes and sexist remarks

  During blockades at Le Mans University, students reported racist remarks and Nazi salutes from other students during a debate, and sexist remarks from a professor and from two bystanders about women in the movement.

  Oct 21 · Le MansRacism1 source

• Poitiers councillor targeted with racist insults and death threats online

  A female city councillor in Poitiers was subjected to a wave of racist comments and death threats under a Facebook video showing her confronting a demonstrator at a rally.

  Oct 19 · PoitiersRacism1 source

• Police officer at Perpignan school protest accused of racist, sexist remarks

  A national police officer near Lycée Maillol in Perpignan wore far-right insignia and made racist and sexist remarks to a group of schoolgirls during a student protest.

  Oct 2 · PerpignanRacism2 sources

September 2026

• Female Eiffel Tower staff excluded during Hindu delegation visit

  Female employees at the Eiffel Tower were removed, replaced and made invisible during a visit by a Hindu religious delegation, prompting staff anger and the monument's closure.

  Sep 5 · ParisSexism / Gender-Based Violence2 sources

August 2026

• Antisemitic swastika graffiti found on municipal buildings in Fécamp

  Swastikas and insulting anti-police inscriptions were discovered on municipal buildings in Fécamp, near a memorial to deported Jewish resistance fighters.

  Aug 22 · FécampReligious Discrimination1 source

• Memorial portrait of Guinean resistance fighter Addi Bâ shot at again

  A memorial panel honouring Addi Bâ, a Guinean who fought in the French resistance, was shot at in La Vacheresse-et-la-Rouillie, with a bullet striking his portrait in the head area.

  Aug 16 · La Vacheresse-et-la-RouillieRacism2 sources

• Pregnant Muslim woman wearing headscarf assaulted in Toulouse

  A pregnant woman who had just dropped her children at school was beaten in Toulouse by an attacker who shouted 'pas de ça chez nous' and tried to tear off her headscarf.

  Aug 11 · ToulouseRacism1 source

• Antisemitic graffiti found at multiple sites in French town La Flèche

  Swastikas and Celtic crosses were painted at several locations in La Flèche, including near a war memorial.

  Aug 4 · La FlècheReligious Discrimination1 source

July 2026

• Jewish DJ's Grenoble concert halted by protesters throwing bottles

  A concert by Jewish DJ Barbara Butch at a Grenoble festival was interrupted by pro-Palestinian and insoumis activists who distributed a tract depicting her as a 'supporter of genocidaires' and threw glass bottles at the stage, prompting the city to suspend the event.

  Jul 18 · GrenobleReligious Discrimination3 sources

• Plaque honoring Righteous Among the Nations vandalized in Paris

  A commemorative plaque at 15 rue Louis Braille in Paris's 12th arrondissement, honoring Arsène and Angèle Richard and their daughter Marcelle for saving a Jewish child during the 1942 Vel' d'Hiv roundup, was found degraded.

  Jul 17 · ParisReligious Discrimination3 sources

• LFI activists allegedly insulted and assaulted at Lyon firefighters' ball

  During the firefighters' ball at the Corneille barracks in Lyon's 3rd arrondissement, activists of La France insoumise were allegedly subjected to racist and xenophobic insults and spitting, and one was struck on the head.

  Jul 13 · LyonRacismXenophobia1 source

• School staff in Bordeaux accused of sexual violence against pupils

  An Atsem and an after-school activity leader at the Frida-Kahlo school in Bordeaux were removed after several complaints of rape and sexual assault against pupils.

  Jul 1 · BordeauxSexism / Gender-Based Violence1 source

June 2026

• Racist chants against Arabs filmed in Rodez nightclub

  A video circulating on social media shows young men in a nightclub in Rodez chanting a racist slogan calling for Arabs to be sent 'to the slaughterhouse'.

  Jun 24 · RodezRacism1 source

• Far-right banner at Saint-Denis basilica calls for mass deportation

  A banner calling for the mass deportation of people of foreign origin was hung on the facade of the Saint-Denis basilica by a far-right group.

  Jun 11 · Saint-DenisRacism1 source

May 2026

• 11-year-old girl found dead in Gers silo after abduction

  An 11-year-old schoolgirl was found dead in a disused silo in the Gers, six days after she was abducted.

  May 29 · OccitanieSexism / Gender-Based Violence1 source

• 11-year-old girl raped and killed in Fleurance, France

  An 11-year-old girl was raped and killed in the south-west French town of Fleurance; her body was found after she disappeared.

  May 29 · FleuranceSexism / Gender-Based Violence1 source

• Cooking teacher accused of sexual assault at Saint-Nazaire hotel school

  A cooking teacher at the Sainte-Anne hotel school in Saint-Nazaire is accused of sexual assault and inappropriate sexual gestures toward two minor female students, prompting a complaint.

  May 27 · Saint-NazaireSexism / Gender-Based Violence1 source

• Agen newsroom receives death threats and bullets in anti-Muslim letter

  An anonymous handwritten letter signed 'Le Ragondin de Garonne', containing death threats and three large-caliber bullets, was sent to the newsroom of Le Petit Bleu in Agen.

  May 18 · AgenReligious Discrimination2 sources

• CNews commentator calls Saint-Denis mayor 'a Malian mayor in France'

  During a debate on CNews about France's relations with Africa, a columnist said the country now has 'a Malian mayor in France', referring to Bally Bagayoko, the elected mayor of Saint-Denis.

  May 15Racism1 source

• Man assaulted with homophobic slurs at post office in Roquebrune-Cap-Martin

  A man waiting in line at the La Poste in Carnolès, Roquebrune-Cap-Martin, was insulted with homophobic slurs and struck several times on the head and leg by another customer.

  May 6 · Roquebrune-Cap-MartinQueer Discrimination1 source

April 2026

• Gabriel Attal denounces homophobic messages posted on his social media

  Gabriel Attal published a message on Instagram exposing a torrent of homophobic insults, caricatures, montages and threats posted on his social media accounts, and said he would always denounce homophobia.

  Apr 21Queer Discrimination1 source

• Man fires rifle near children, shouts racist remarks in Haute-Loire

  A 65-year-old man fired a rifle into the air near a group of children in Espaly-Saint-Marcel and was heard declaring he was racist and proud of it.

  Apr 19 · Espaly-Saint-MarcelRacism1 source

• Activity leader suspended over suspected rape of 3-year-old girl

  A leisure-centre activity leader in Guyancourt was suspended after a 3-year-old girl told her parents of pain in her intimate area and identified an adult at the centre.

  Apr 15 · GuyancourtSexism / Gender-Based Violence1 source

• France bans annual gathering of Muslims in Paris

  The Paris police chief issued an order barring the 40th annual gathering of France's Muslims, which was to be held at the Paris-Le Bourget exhibition centre, citing security and terrorism risks.

  Apr 3 · ParisReligious Discrimination1 source

March 2026

• Black French MPs and mayor targeted in racist letter campaign

  Several Black members of the French parliament received anonymous letters containing racist imagery and slurs, and the Black mayor of Saint-Denis has faced repeated racist comments since his election.

  Mar 31 · Saint-DenisRacism2 sources

• CNews broadcast comparing Saint-Denis mayor to a monkey denounced as racist

  During a CNews debate about the newly elected mayor of Saint-Denis, a psychologist said humans are social mammals of the great ape family and that every tribe has a chief, remarks denounced as racist for likening the mayor to a monkey and a tribal chief.

  Mar 27Racism13 sources

• Nine Muslim graves vandalized in French cemetery

  Nine graves in the Muslim section of a cemetery in Puy-en-Velay, Haute-Loire, France, were found damaged after a man visiting his father's grave discovered the wooden plaque bearing his father's name had been destroyed.

  Mar 16 · Puy-en-VelayReligious Discrimination2 sources

• Kosher restaurant near Paris vandalized with antisemitic graffiti

  A kosher restaurant in Levalois, near Paris, was vandalized with the inscription 'SALE JUIF' ('Dirty Jew'), according to a local rabbi.

  Mar 8 · LevaloisReligious Discrimination2 sources

• Racist slurs aimed at a candidate's running mate while canvassing in Marseille

  Hanifa Taguelmint, a running mate of Benoît Payan for the Marseille municipal election, was verbally attacked with racist slurs by activists she identified as members of the Rassemblement national while canvassing in the 13th arrondissement.

  Mar 7 · MarseilleRacism2 sources

• French election candidate called Algerians 'people of cockroaches' in posts

  A municipal election candidate in Saint-Raphaël posted tweets and comments calling Algerians a 'people of cockroaches' and other racist messages targeting Algerians and North Africans, later deleting them.

  Mar 6 · Saint-RaphaëlRacism1 source

• Candidate's campaign posters defaced with swastikas in Le Tampon

  In Le Tampon, campaign posters for candidate Alexis Chaussalet were torn down, and on some posters swastikas were drawn and a moustache resembling Adolf Hitler's was added.

  Mar 2 · Le TamponReligious Discrimination1 source

February 2026

• Swastikas spray-painted at former Nazi transit camp site in Drancy

  Two swastikas were spray-painted on buildings at the site of the former Drancy internment camp, the main departure point for Jewish deportees from France during the Holocaust.

  Feb 25 · DrancyReligious Discrimination1 source

• Elderly Jewish woman in Paris insulted with antisemitic slurs by campaign activists

  An elderly Jewish woman in Paris's 19th district was shouted at with antisemitic insults and threats by activists distributing campaign leaflets after they saw a mezuzah on her door.

  Feb 22 · ParisReligious Discrimination1 source

• Rabbi and children targeted with Nazi salute in Lyon

  A rabbi walking with a group of children to synagogue in central Lyon was confronted by an individual who performed a Nazi salute and shouted 'Free Palestine'.

  Feb 21 · LyonReligious Discrimination1 source

• Kosher restaurant in Paris vandalized with acid

  Unknown perpetrators broke into a kosher restaurant in Paris's 17th arrondissement and sprayed a corrosive liquid, apparently acid, on tables, walls and floors, causing heavy damage.

  Feb 20 · ParisReligious Discrimination1 source

• Three Jewish men threatened with knife near Trocadero in Paris

  Three men wearing kippahs were walking near the Trocadero in Paris after leaving a synagogue when a man asked if they were Jews or Israelis and then drew a knife.

  Feb 6 · ParisReligious Discrimination1 source

• CNews columnist says convicted foreigners should be thrown into the Mediterranean

  During a live debate programme on CNews about the judicial treatment of convicted foreign nationals, a columnist said they should be thrown into the Mediterranean because Algeria, Tunisia and Morocco do not want them.

  Feb 2Racism1 source

January 2026

• Syrian-origin student assaulted by masked attackers in Décines-Charpieu

  Three masked individuals shaved the eyebrows and slashed the face of a 17-year-old student of Syrian origin with a razor while shouting racist insults as he walked to school in Décines-Charpieu.

  Jan 19 · Décines-CharpieuRacismReligious Discrimination1 source

December 2025

• Charlie Hebdo publishes racist caricature of Black French journalist

  The satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo published a caricature depicting French journalist Rokhaya Diallo, a Black woman, as a semi-nude dancer wearing a belt of bananas before a laughing white audience.

  Dec 24Racism1 source

Elsewhere in Europe

• Belgium 10
• Bulgaria 10
• Germany 32
• Greece 19
• Ireland 13
• Italy 68
• Netherlands 12
• North Macedonia 27
• Poland 12
• Spain 117
• United Kingdom 77