The offices of the Movement Against Racism and Anti-Semitism (MRAP) and three lawyers who are members of MRAP were the targets of bomb attacks last Thursday and Friday. The attack against the MRAP office Thursday caused little damage. Police at the scene said they found a note saying the attack was to avenge the death of former SS officer Joachim Peiper who was killed exactly a year ago in his home in eastern France. Peiper had been accused of mass murders in France and Italy during World War II.
The bomb found Friday in front of a Paris building where the three lawyers have their offices only partly exploded. According to police, the bomb, made of a powerful rocket attached to small explosive charge, was intended to kill. A note found near the scene identified those responsible for the bombing attempt as a pro-Nazi group. The note was written in German and read: “Peiper ein jahr” (Peiper one year). This was the ninth time since the death of Peiper that the MRAP has been the target of pro-Nazi terrorists.
One of the MRAP lawyers, Roland Rappaport, blamed the police for failing to discover any clues about the attackers. “We have good reasons to believe that certain people are not showing much zeal in finding the culprits,” he said. Albert Levy, MRAP secretary general, said the attackers belong to extreme right-wing groups which have close links with American and German pro-Nazis and supporters of apartheid in South Africa.
JTA has documented Jewish history in real-time for over a century. Keep our journalism strong by joining us in supporting independent, award-winning reporting.
The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.