Paris adopts the IHRA definition of antisemitism

The city of Paris adopted the IHRA Definition of Antisemitism during a session of the Council of Paris on Thursday, joining a growing number of cities around the world, including London and more recently the French city of Nice, to make the move.

The decision was taken by the Council of Paris, headed by Paris' Mayor Anne Hidalgo, which consists of 163 councillors and that is responsible for governing the French capital.

The IHRA definition is an internationally agreed classification of antisemitism, which also provides contemporary examples of how antisemitism too often plays out in public life, the media, schools, the workplace, and in the religious sphere.

"The ability to criticize Israel's policies on many subjects is something that comes under political opinion, and the exercise of political opinion. Criticizing Israel in its essence and existence falls under the definition of antisemitism, it is a new form of antisemitism," Hidalgo said during the vote in the Assembly.