Two minors have been placed in custody in Paris on suspicion of plotting an antisemitic attack, according to judicial and press sources.
One of them, a Chechen 16-year-old who came to France with his mother four years ago, had sent a photo on WhatsApp of himself holding a knife and announced that he was “going to kill Jews in five days,” Le Parisien newspaper reported.
He was in contact with the other 16-year-old, who lived in the Paris region, and threatened to target a site of religious worship, the newspaper added. The second teen was described as coming from a family with “a Muslim background.”
Confirming the press reports, France’s national anti-terror prosecutor’s office said that the pair had been charged with “participation in a terrorist criminal association with the aim of preparing one or more crimes against persons.”
Le Parisien cited an investigation source as saying they adhered to the ideology of the Islamic State terror group.
France has charged 20 minors for terrorism-related offenses in 2025 so far, with prosecutors pointing to an uptick in young people being indicted for such plots over the past five years.
The pair’s detention increases this year’s total over the 19 minors charged with terrorism-related offences across the whole of 2024.
