A leading French journalist working for BuzzFeed was attacked by far-right Jewish extremists as a mob tried to storm the offices of the country’s national news agency in Paris on Thursday.
David Perrotin was protected by police after being surrounded by a dozen masked men brandishing batons.
The Ligue de Défense Juive was protesting against Agence France Presse’s coverage of the Israel-Palestine conflict.
Trouble broke out soon after 8pm when about 100 people brandishing flags and letting off flares tried to storm AFP’s offices.
As the crowd approached the entrance to the building, opposite the Paris stock exchange, tear gas was sprayed in their faces, and skirmishes with CRS riot police broke out.
Some of the demonstrators were shouting “We’re coming to get you!” at journalists, while others screamed: “Islamic terrorists!”
The words “AFP collabo” were also shouted in reference to the French collaborating with the Nazis during world war two.
Perrotin was covering the violence using Twitter, and at about 8pm tweeted: “A demonstrator told me ‘I warned the LDJ that you’re here Mr Perrotin.’”
The journalist has frequently exposed the work of the French branch of the Jewish Defence League, which is banned in both Israel and the US.
Perrotin was set upon by the gang, some of whom were masked. After being attacked, he managed to shelter behind police lines.
In June last year two LDJ members in Paris were found guilty of placing a bomb under the car of an anti-Zionist journalist. They were given prison sentences, but one absconded to Israel.
Despite the group’s reputation for violence, police on Thursday allowed LDJ flags – a black clenched fist against a yellow background – to be brandished openly.
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