On Thursday, August 21, 2025, a group of Israeli children aged 8 to 16, on holiday in Spain, found themselves at the center of an international controversy after being refused entry to a zip line facility in Porté-Puymorens, a small village nestled in the Pyrenean mountains of southern France. Despite having a prior reservation, the children—numbering around 150—were told by the park manager that they could not enter, with the initial reason given as “personal beliefs.” The incident has since sparked outrage across France and beyond, highlighting a troubling rise in antisemitic and anti-Israel incidents throughout Europe.
According to the Perpignan prosecutor’s office, the 52-year-old manager of the leisure park was detained by police and now faces charges of “refusing service or conducting a transaction based on religious discrimination.” If convicted, he could face up to three years in prison, as discrimination based on religion is a criminal offense in France. The manager, whose identity has not been disclosed, reportedly has no prior criminal record and has denied any wrongdoing. Authorities said that after the refusal, the children were safely relocated to another leisure site in France with the assistance of local police, requiring three buses for the transfer. No incident was reported at the alternative facility.
The park’s management had posted a message on social media the previous evening, stating that the site would be closed on Thursday due to a storm and a need to conduct a “complete inspection of the facilities.” However, this closure did not appear to apply to other groups, and the justification shifted depending on whom the manager spoke to. Some were told about the manager’s “personal principles,” while others were given different explanations. This inconsistency further fueled suspicions that the refusal was rooted in religious or national discrimination.
Perla Danan, president of the Representative Council of Jewish Institutions in France (CRIF) for the Languedoc-Roussillon region, condemned the incident in the strongest terms. “A line was crossed. We are appalled,” Danan stated, as reported by the Associated Press. She drew a chilling historical parallel, saying, “It started with graffiti, insults and physical attacks and now it’s literally a ban on children aged 8 to 16. It reminded me of the ‘no Jews or dogs allowed’ sign during the Holocaust.” Danan insisted that “France’s values have been violated” by this act.
The mayor of Porté-Puymorens, Jean-Philippe Augé, expressed his own shock at the turn of events. The village, home to just around 100 residents, prides itself on a sense of community and hospitality. “The DNA of our community is based on a sense of sharing and fraternity,” Augé remarked, adding that the incident had caused “utter astonishment” among locals. He also clarified that the zip line course is operated by a private company, not the municipality, distancing the village from the actions of the park’s manager.
Condemnation was swift and widespread. The Jewish Observatory of France issued a statement expressing “deep outrage,” declaring that “such an act of discrimination, targeting minors exclusively on the basis of their nationality and origin, is extremely serious and undermines the fundamental principles of the Republic.” The organization’s statement underscored the gravity of the incident, especially given the ages of those targeted.
The legal ramifications for the manager are significant. In France, discrimination based on religion is not only socially unacceptable but also a criminal offense punishable by up to three years in prison. The prosecutor’s office has initiated a formal investigation, and the case has quickly become emblematic of broader concerns over rising antisemitism in the country and across Europe.
This incident comes amid a sharp increase in antisemitic acts in France, particularly after the October 7, 2023, Hamas attacks in Israel and the subsequent war in Gaza. As reported by the Associated Press and corroborated by local Jewish organizations, 2023 saw a surge in physical assaults, threats, vandalism, and harassment directed at Jewish communities. The climate of fear and insecurity has prompted alarm among Jewish leaders, who see the Porté-Puymorens case as part of a disturbing trend.
But France is not alone in facing such challenges. According to reports from Jonet, a Jewish-Dutch news outlet, two Israeli visitors were violently attacked at the De Kampervoorn water park in the Netherlands, resulting in their hospitalization in Eindhoven. Earlier in the week, anti-Israel activists were also caught secretly filming Israeli vacationers in the country. The Israeli Foreign Ministry responded with a statement urging the Dutch government to “act firmly, prevent further attacks on Israelis, identify the perpetrators and prosecute them.”
Further north in Austria, pro-Palestinian activists stormed the headquarters of the public broadcaster ORF in Vienna, protesting its coverage of the Gaza war. Demonstrators vandalized the building, entered the newsroom, tossed leaflets, and accused the channel of “involvement in Israel’s genocide.” Six activists were arrested after police dispersed the protest. ORF responded with a statement rejecting allegations of bias, affirming its commitment to “journalistic objectivity” and “balanced reporting” on the Gaza conflict.
The events in Porté-Puymorens, the Netherlands, and Austria are, according to many observers, symptomatic of a broader wave of anti-Israel and antisemitic sentiment sweeping across Europe since the escalation of violence in the Middle East. Jewish communities and Israeli tourists alike have reported feeling increasingly vulnerable, as incidents ranging from verbal abuse to outright violence become more frequent.
In the wake of the Porté-Puymorens incident, calls for vigilance and stronger enforcement of anti-discrimination laws have grown louder. Civil society groups, Jewish organizations, and local officials are urging both national governments and European institutions to take decisive action. The challenge, they argue, is not only to hold individuals accountable but also to reaffirm the foundational values of tolerance, equality, and fraternity that underpin European democracies.
For the children at the heart of the French controversy, the episode ended safely, if not happily, with their relocation to another site. Yet the echoes of the incident are likely to linger, serving as a stark reminder of the work still needed to combat prejudice and ensure that the mistakes of history are not repeated. As the investigation proceeds, all eyes will be on the French justice system to see how it handles a case that has come to symbolize a much wider struggle.
