The Union Libérale Israélite de France (ULIF), sometimes called the rue Copernic synagogue, is a reformist Jewish synagogue, located in Paris, France. Founded in 1907 by Rabbi Louis-Germain Levy, it is the oldest Reform synagogue in France. ^[1] It has been led by Rabbi Michael Williams since 1978.

Contents 1 History 2 1980 attack 3 References 4 External links

[edit] History

The architect was the grandfather of Alain Cohen, the child actor in the 1967 film The Two of Us (film). ^[2]

The synagogue was damaged in a fascist riot in 1941, but was repaired after the war.^[3]

[edit] 1980 attack

The 1980 Paris synagogue bombing took place on October 3, 1980, on the eve of Simchat Torah, when the synagogue of ULIF, located in the rue Copernic, was bombed. A bomb hidden in a motorcycle went off outside the place, killing four people and wounding twenty others.

On October 12, 2007, French police announced they located one of the perpetrators behind the attack after a report from the German intelligence services. A 54-year-old fugitive of Lebanese descent is living as a naturalized citizen in Canada^[4], although the man denies the allegations against him.^[5][6] The suspect, Hassan Diab, a sociology lecturer, was finally arrested on November 13, 2008.^[7]

The bombing was the start of a string of other attacks against Jews in Europe; in August 1981, a synagogue in Vienna, Austria, was attacked by Palestinian gunmen, killing two people; in October 1981, three people were killed when a bomb went off in the centre of Antwerp, Belgium.^[8] The 55-year old fugitive is said to be behind the Antwerp attack as well.^[9]

[edit] References

[edit] External links

• Union Libérale Israélite de France (Official Site)