Firefighters discovered additional fires at two entrances to the synagogue. Five people, including the rabbi, who were present in the synagogue complex at the time of the attack were unharmed, the National Anti-terrorism Prosecutor’s Office said in a statement.
Mr Macron, the French president, said: “We’re doing all we can to find the person who carried out this terrorist act and to protect places of worship.”
Gabriel Attal, the French prime minister, wrote on X: “This is an anti-Semitic attack. Once more, our Jewish compatriots are targeted. We won’t give up. In the face of anti-Semitism, in the face of violence, we will never allow ourselves to be intimidated.”
France, like other countries in Europe, has seen a surge in antisemitic incidents following the Hamas attacks on Israel on Oct. 7 and Israel’s retaliatory assault on Gaza.
Injured officer taken to hospital
The officer was taken to hospital in nearby Montpellier after being knocked to the ground in the blast as he was securing the perimeter of the building.
He was among firefighters, police and gendarmes who rushed to the fire at the Beth Yaacov synagogue after two cars were torched outside it.
Gerald Darmanin, the interior minister, said: “An attempted arson attack, clearly criminal, hit the synagogue of La Grande Motte this morning.
“I want to assure our Jewish fellow citizens and the municipality of my full support and say that at the request of the president of the Republic Emmanuel Macron, all means are being mobilised to find the perpetrator.”