The French Jewish community no longer feels safe and protected after October 7th. For generations, Jews have been deeply woven into the fabric of French society — active in medicine, law, academia, the arts, and public life — and proud to call themselves French and European citizens.

Yet after a sharp rise in antisemitic attacks and hate speech fuelled simultaneously by the far left, the far right, and pro-Islamist groups, many members of the community find themselves feeling threatened, unwelcome, and ultimately compelled to leave. The tragic irony is not lost on historians: France was itself a refuge for the Jewish families who fled Arab countries in the 1950s and 1960s. Today, their grandchildren are preparing to leave.

A major immigration fair held in Paris last Sunday brought together several hundred French Jewish doctors considering aliyah — emigration to Israel. The third MedEx Paris event, organised by the nonprofit Nefesh B’Nefesh in partnership with Israel’s ministries of aliyah, health, and regional development, drew participants from across France and beyond, all seeking to navigate the bureaucratic process of converting their medical licences for Israeli practice.

“It is becoming more and more difficult to live here because of antisemitism,” said Raphael Mimoun, 26, a general practitioner in Paris who attended with his wife, a surgeon. “The majority of young people are thinking a lot about how they can live in Israel before it is too late,” added Eva Cohen, 30.

During the gathering, more than 50 applications for medical licence conversions were submitted directly to the Israeli Health Ministry — the programme simultaneously addressing a genuine shortage of physicians in Israel’s periphery regions, particularly the Negev and the Galilee.

Israeli Minister of Aliyah and Integration Ofir Sofer confirmed the programme has already reached over a third of its five-year target to bring 2,000 doctors to Israel from across the world. Similar MedEx events have now been held in Paris, Buenos Aires, London, Los Angeles, Sydney, Melbourne, Toronto, and Montreal.

The emotional weight of the moment was not lost on organisers. “This is the first time in 25 years where we are seeing a concern expressed by so many of not seeing a stable future here for themselves and future generations,” said Rabbi Yehoshua Fass, executive director of Nefesh B’Nefesh.

Melvin, 35, a plastic surgery resident from Brussels, captured the fear that many attendees voiced: “Here, I’m afraid to show I am Jewish because there is a lot of antisemitism. If you want to be successful, you need to hide your Judaism.” He hopes to move to Israel within five years.

Laurent Bonnamy, 57, a gynaecologist who flew in from French Polynesia’s island of Tahiti, framed his motivations in terms of collective belonging: “With all the events that have happened over the last couple of years, we feel very connected to Israel. Over here, we feel useless for the Jewish nation and for Israel.”

This exodus of educated, professionally accomplished Jewish citizens is a profound loss — not only for France’s Jewish community, but for France itself. A society that fails to protect the safety, dignity, and belonging of its minorities ultimately impoverishes itself. The voices gathered in Paris on Sunday are a warning that must not go unheeded.