Paris Mosques Targeted in Islamophobic Pig Head Incidents, Police Launch Hate-Crime Probe

 

                                            At least nine pig heads found outside several Paris mosques.

French authorities have opened a hate-crime investigation after at least nine pig heads were discovered outside several mosques in Paris and its suburbs, in what officials have condemned as “despicable” and “outrageous” acts.

Paris Police Chief Laurent Nunez confirmed that four mosques in the capital and five in nearby suburbs were targeted, with some of the heads placed directly at entrances and one found inside a suitcase. At one site, the word “Macron” was scrawled in blue, an apparent reference to the French president.

Interior Minister Bruno Retailleau denounced the incidents as “absolutely unacceptable,” expressing solidarity with France’s Muslim community and affirming their right to worship in peace. Chems-Eddine Hafiz, rector of the Grand Mosque of Paris, described the events as a “new and sad stage in the rise of anti-Muslim hatred” and called for national unity against such provocations.

France, home to over six million Muslims — the largest Muslim population in the European Union — has seen a sharp rise in anti-Muslim acts since the Gaza war began in October 2023, according to EU data. Police have not yet identified suspects, but say further discoveries cannot be ruled out.