On February 16, Jeremie Cohen was beaten up by a group of young people, then was hit by a tram towards Bobigny. A few hours later, the 31-year-old man succumbed to his injuries, head trauma and cardio-respiratory arrest. The case ignites the canvas and the candidates are torn apart.
Although it turned out that the young man was of the Jewish faith, the prosecutor of Bobigny affirms that he does not “it does not appear from the testimonies collected so far that the attack was committed for discriminatory reasons”. Be that as it may, some politicians are indignant today at the media silence, which lasted two long months.
While deploring the anti-Semitic nature of the affair, Éric Zemmour (Reconquête) questioned: “Why is no media, no politician, no member of the government talking about the death of Jeremie Cohen, beaten up by thugs?” Marine Le Pen (National Rally) also condemns these acts, adding to the debate the theme of insecurity. Valérie Pécresse ventures to explain that “the new anti-Semitism was present in certain neighborhoods”.
On the left, Fabien Roussel and Yannick Jadot also strongly condemn anti-Semitism, hoping that light will be shed on these heinous acts. Natalie Arthaud (Lutte Ouvrière) for her part, responds to the far right by denouncing a “instrumentalization by Éric Zemmour”, so that he can justify his remarks on immigration. Finally, Jean-Luc Mélenchon (la France insoumise) wonders about the role played by the police, castigating that the family did not have to take justice into their own hands.
In this regard, the father of the victim courageously testified: “I should have been there to protect him”, deploring the slow reaction of the police. It was not until March 10, thanks to the media appeal of the two Cohen brothers, that a video was received to advance the investigation.
Still, a few days before the presidential election, all subjects are good for candidates to compete against.
Unsurprisingly, Emmanuel Macron stands apart and does not participate in the debate. However, he receives Jeremie Cohen’s relatives on the phone to support them, while declaring: “We must not give rise to political manipulation”. Let us recall the remarks he made on March 31 following the burglary of a farmer, about self-defense: “We are not in the Wild West”. The President argued that it is up to the “public authorities” to act accordingly.
On this subject, beyond questions of anti-Semitism, journalist Vincent Hervouët was indignant on the set of CNEWS: “No, we’re not in the Wild West, it’s much worse! It’s the law of the jungle!” He paints a disturbing picture of our society:
Vincent Hervouet (@CNEWS ) in relation to #JeremyCohen
All this has an incredible resonance 8 days after the head of state said that he would not let the French indulge in self-defense and that we were not in the Wild West
It’s much worse, we’re in the law of the jungle pic.twitter.com/0X6rxfIboR— David Dobsky (@dobsky33) April 5, 2022
Note that French law (Article 122-5 of the Penal Code) allows any citizen to defend themselves, to protect someone or property, in the event of an immediate attack from another person. For this, five conditions must be met:
– The attack must be unjustified, that is to say without valid reason;
– The defense must be for oneself, or for another person;
– The defense must be immediate;
– The defense must be necessary for its protection, that is to say that the only solution is the response;
– The defense must be proportional, that is to say equal to the gravity of the attack.