French researchers cancel their participation in a seminar on the history of Jews in France due to the genocide in Gaza.

Five French researchers canceled their participation in an academic seminar on the history of Jews in France, titled "Jewish Histories of Paris" (Medieval and Modern), scheduled for September 15 and 16 at the Museum of Art and Jewish History in Paris, citing the ongoing war in Gaza and the funding of an Israeli PhD student, which sparked widespread controversy in French cultural and academic circles.

The Museum of Art and Jewish History (Mahj) announced on Thursday that the researchers justified their decision due to the connection of a research program affiliated with the Hebrew University of Jerusalem to the funding of a PhD student's participation, expressing their discontent with any form of support for the Israeli government.

The museum clarified that some researchers viewed their participation as "support for the Israeli government," while others merely referenced the war in Gaza to challenge the conditions of organizing the seminar.

The museum confirmed that despite the boycott, it would continue to hold the seminar after reformatting it, noting that this step "unreasonably harms the Israeli academic community, which includes prominent opponents of the war in Gaza," and emphasizing that the decision conflated academic research with political officials.

French Culture Minister Rachida Dati expressed her discontent with the boycott, considering that these repeated calls "have turned into an excuse for overt anti-Semitism," adding in a post on X platform: "It is no longer a matter of opinion, but a matter of justice and criminal policy."

For his part, Yonatan Arfi, president of the Representative Council of Jewish Institutions in France (Crif), described the boycott as behavior deserving of sanctions, explaining that this phenomenon reflects "cultural hegemony based on obsession and hatred towards Israel."

The International League Against Racism and Anti-Semitism condemned this step, considering it "undermines the principle of scientific research by questioning its independence."

Ariel Goldman, president of the French Jewish Foundation, pointed out that linking participation in the seminar to the conflict in Gaza represents "a dangerous conflation of irrelevant facts that undermines academic freedom."

The number of Jews in France is estimated to be between 438,000 and 550,000, according to a definition that includes those who identify as Jews without adopting another religion, or those with Jewish parents without adopting a different religious identity.

France ranks third globally after Israel and the United States in terms of the Jewish population, and it is the largest in Europe compared to any other European country, according to a report by the Institute for Jewish Policy Research (JPR).