Israelis stab nephew of French prime minister and two friends in Eilat

Victims in light-to-moderate condition following altercation on port city’s promenade

By DANIEL K. EISENBUD
Updated: JANUARY 10, 2018 00:14
French Prime Minister Edouard Philippe attends a ceremony at the Buffault Synagogue in Paris, France, October 2, 2017. (photo credit: REUTERS/CHRISTOPHE ARCHAMBAULT/POOL)
French Prime Minister Edouard Philippe attends a ceremony at the Buffault Synagogue in Paris, France, October 2, 2017.
(photo credit: REUTERS/CHRISTOPHE ARCHAMBAULT/POOL)
The 25-year-old nephew of French Prime Minister Edouard Philippe and two other French nationals were stabbed in an apparent street fight with Israelis in Eilat last week, police said on Tuesday.
While details of the altercation remain unclear, according to police the incident took place on a promenade last Thursday night while the three men were vacationing together in the country.
“A dispute took place, and the three French tourists were stabbed in the lower part of their bodies by a number of suspects who we believe are Israeli,” said police spokesman Micky Rosenfeld.
“The suspects fled the scene and the prime minister’s nephew and two other victims were treated for light-to-moderate wounds at Joseftal Hospital, where they were later released and returned to France the next day.”
“Police are interviewing the victims and reviewing CCTV footage to track the assailants, and hope to make arrests shortly,” he added.
The French Embassy did not comment on the matter and didn’t disclose the name of the nephew, although the French consul aided the three following the attack.
Rosenfeld said the dispute does not appear to be politically motivated, despite heightened diplomatic tensions between Israel and France as President Emmanuel Macron and Philippe protest the United States’ designation of Jerusalem as Israel’s capital.
Philippe recently made headlines for supporting the publication of antisemitic essays by French author Louis-Ferdinand Destouches, whose pseudonym is “Celine,” despite protests from France’s considerable Jewish community.
Meanwhile, aliya continues to soar from France, amid ongoing antisemitism and the Jewish Agency’s outreach and education efforts.