France on Sunday commemorated the Vel d’Hiv roundup, honoring victims of the 1942 French police operation that led to 13,152 Jews being deported, including about one-third children.
A Paris plaque honoring a couple and their daughter who saved a 13-year-old during the roundup was vandalized ahead of the ceremony, prompting officials to vow it will be restored.
Alice Rufo, a deputy defense minister, said attacking the “Righteous” desecrates their memory and pledged the Republic would not yield to antisemitism.
The ceremony came as France, home to Europe’s largest Jewish population, faces a rise in antisemitic threats, vandalism and violence since the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas attacks and the Gaza war.
The annual remembrance also underscores France’s long reckoning with Vichy collaboration; official state responsibility for the Vel d’Hiv raids was acknowledged only 50 years after World War II.
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1,600 Antisemitic Acts in France (2024): The Vel d’Hiv Roundup, Holocaust Memory, and Attacks on Righteous Among the Nations Memorials
Overview
The Vel d’Hiv Roundup in July 1942 was a tragic event where French police, under the Vichy government’s agreement, arrested thousands of Jews in Paris as part of a wider operation across France. This led to the deportation and murder of about 77,000 Jews. For decades, France avoided facing its role in these crimes, with leaders like François Mitterrand reflecting this reluctance. Over time, this denial created a collective amnesia about the state’s involvement. A turning point came when President Jacques Chirac publicly acknowledged France’s responsibility, marking a significant shift in the nation’s memory and understanding of its past.