Marseilles attack reignites debate on wearing of religious clothing

A recent attack in Marseilles on a Jewish teacher wearing a kippa has rekindled France’s long-standing debate about wearing religious clothing in public, writes Tom Heneghan.

Benjamin Amsellem was attacked with a machete on Monday last week by a teenager who claimed to be acting “in the name of Islamic State”. Amsellem was wounded in the back and hand but was able to protect himself with the Torah he was carrying.

The incident became national  when the Jewish community leader there advised men not to wear the Jewish skullcap in public. Chief Rabbi Haim Korsia promptly criticised this appeal and President François Hollande called it “unbearable” that people should have to “hide ... because of religious choices”. Four Christians made appeals to non-Jews to wear kippas in solidarity and two deputies, one Jewish and one not, wore them in the National Assembly.