Ilan Halimi

Ilan Halimi was murdered in 2006 for being a Jew. He was taken to a vacant apartment in the suburbs of Paris — the same area where rioting raged for several weeks last fall — held for ransom, and tortured. During several calls from the kidnappers Ilan's uncle told of hearing his nephew's screams in the background. Three weeks later, handcuffed, naked and covered with bruises, burns and stab wounds, Ilan was left at a train station. He died in an ambulance on the way to the hospital.

The trial of Ilan's accused murderers is now underway with 27 suspects involved.  It will hopefully set a precedent for confronting anti-Semitic acts in France, a growing problem in that country. In 2008, a French Jewish boy was beaten into a coma in Paris:

According to a French Jewish group, the boy was surrounded by some 15 people while walking home in a largely Jewish neighborhood. He was easily identifiable as a Jew as he was wearing a kippa. The gang proceeded to beat the youth - some reports said with iron rods - until he was unconscious.

Ilan was kidnapped by a group calling themselves the "gang of barbarians." The leader of the group showed no signs of remorse at his trial:

The alleged leader of a group of 27 young people charged with participating in the torture and killing of a young French Jew took his seat in juvenile court Wednesday with the defiant declaration, "Allah will be victorious."

I pray that God guides the jury and judges to make the right decisions and bring justice to Ilan's family. This case is pivotal for French Jews, who are increasingly under threat of anti-Semitism. In Ilan's case the authorities initially tried to downplay the anti-Semitism that motivated the murder.  It is scary how much hate there can be in the world, but it is even scarier when people want to ignore it.

Comments

[Lou Ann Moore]

Pray for the peace of Jerusalem they shall prosper that love thee May God Bless Israel

[Leslie Ann Morgan]

I am really upset by the animosity
and wrath that is displayed towards the Jews.I consider myself as a "grafted" in Hebrew.
I beleive in my heart that the reason why the Jews are always being persecuted worldwide is because Israel is Yahs chosen people and the world despises the
fact that Israel has the hope and blessing of the almighty Yah and no weapon that the world forms against that mighty nation shall prosper against them.I hope that they(Israel)use all of their resources to reduce Iran to rubble.