An undergraduate student at the Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne University has been handed a four-month suspended prison sentence by a Paris criminal court after being found guilty of antisemitic harassment linked to the exclusion of fellow students from an online group chat.
The Paris criminal court ruled that the student, enrolled in her first year of a degree in economics, was guilty of “school harassment aggravated by discriminatory intent relating to the victim’s presumed membership of the Jewish religion” in relation to one of the three complainants. She was acquitted in respect of the other two students.
The case centred on events of 15 September 2025, when the defendant created an Instagram group intended for students on her course. She later excluded three female students from the group discussion, which was used to share academic information, reportedly after objecting to their alleged “Zionist” views or perceived political positions.
In messages posted on the platform, she wrote that any “Zionists” in the group, beyond those she had already removed, should leave immediately, adding that they were not welcome. She also stated that “racists in general” were not wanted, accompanying her comments with a Palestinian flag emoji.
Initially suspended from the university, she was later reinstated following a disciplinary decision in November.
During proceedings in February, she argued that one of the students had been removed because she followed accounts perceived as “pro-Israeli military” content, claiming her intention was to preserve a calm and neutral environment within the group. She added that, after noticing the group had been altered and additional students reinstated, she removed all three participants.
However, the court found that her repeated use of the term “Zionist” instead of “Jewish” was intended to downplay the discriminatory nature of her actions, concluding that her remarks in fact referred to the perceived Jewish identity of one of the excluded students.
Alongside the suspended custodial sentence, the defendant was fined €800 and ordered to complete a compulsory two-day placement at the Shoah Memorial in Paris. She must also pay damages to one of the excluded students, the university, and the International League Against Racism and Antisemitism (LICRA).
Civil parties including the group CHAR (Contre la haine, l’antisémitisme, le racisme) and the Union of Jewish Students of France (UEJF) were declared inadmissible in the proceedings.
Reacting to the ruling, France’s Minister for Higher Education Philippe Baptiste said the decision reflected “the criminal nature of antisemitism” and welcomed what he described as the justice system’s firm response. He also pointed to new legislation aimed at strengthening anti-discrimination measures in higher education, including mandatory institutional reporting structures and designated anti-racism and antisemitism officers within universities.
