Activists demand tiny French village changes its name from 'Death to the Jews'

Small settlement has been named La-Mort-aux-Juifs since the Middle Ages



Has population of less than 20 and consists of just a farm and two houses



Name is causing anger amid increasing claims of anti-Semitism in France

Activists demand village's name is changed, but local deputy mayor refused



Marie-Elizabeth Secretand described the anger as 'ridiculous', adding: 'No one has anything against the Jews, of course'



Furious activists fighting against anti-Semitism have demanded that a French hamlet changes its name from 'Death to Jews'.

Anger against the small settlement of La-Mort-aux-Juifs - which has a population of less than 20 and is around 60 miles south of Paris - comes amid increasing claims of anti-Jewish prejudice in France.

The Simon Wiesenthal Centre, an internationally renowned Jewish pressure group, has now sent a letter to France's Interior Minister to complain about the hamlet's name, and express shock that nothing has previously been done to address its controversial moniker .

Controversial: Anger against the small settlement of La-Mort-aux-Juifs (pictured) - which has a population of less than 20 and is 60 miles south of Paris - comes amid increasing claims of anti-Jewish prejudice in France

Shimon Samuels, director of the SWC, said he was 'shocked to discover the existence of a village in France officially called 'Death to Jews'.

Referring to the Second World War Nazi Occupation and the French collaborator government, Mr Samuels added: 'It is extremely shocking that this name has slipped under the radar in the 70 years that have passed since France was liberated from Nazism and the Vichy regime.'

Local police and the national railway, the SNCF, assisted the Nazis during the Holocaust, which saw about 76,000 French Jews murdered.

Many more were persecuted in major cities, including Paris, where 'round-ups' were regularly carried out by the Nazis.

But the deputy mayor of the village of Courtemaux - population 289 - which has jurisdiction over 'La-Mort-aux-Juifs', said nobody had anything to be ashamed of.

'It's ridiculous. This name has always existed,' said Marie-Elizabeth Secretand, in an interview with France's national news agency, AFP.

'No one has anything against the Jews, of course. It doesn't surprise me that this is coming up again.'

History: Local police and the national railway, the SNCF, assisted the Nazis during the Holocaust, which saw about 76,000 French Jews (pictured) murdered

Changing the name would require a decision by the municipal council, and Ms Secretand said this was unlikely to be successful.

'Why change a name that goes back to the Middle Ages or even further?,' she said. 'We should respect these old names.

'A previous municipal council, at least 20 years ago, already refused to change the name of this hamlet, which consists of a farm and two houses.'

The Israeli offensive against Gaza, in which hundreds of civilians including young children have died, has led to claims of increased anti-Semitism in France.

Others say that the increasing electoral success of the far-right National Front, whose founder Jean Marie Le Pen is a convicted anti-Semite, is another reason why Jews are feeling unsafe.

There are currently around 500,000 Jews in France, but many are expressing a desire to emigrate to places where they will feel more secure.