On Saturday, the suspect is accused of setting fire to two vehicles in the synagogue parking lot.
French police have arrested a man suspected of trying to set fire to a synagogue in the southern French town of La Grande Motte.
Interior Minister Gérard Darmanin announced on social media platform X that the suspect had been arrested on Saturday night.
The anti-terrorism prosecutor’s office, which was in charge of the investigation, said the suspect was arrested in Nimes, southern France, on Sunday morning.
“Before police intervened, (the suspect) opened fire on (the officers), who returned fire. The man sustained injuries to his face,” the office said in a statement, adding that two other people were taken into custody.
French media, citing sources close to the investigation, reported that the suspect was a 33-year-old Algerian national, but local police declined to confirm or give further details.
Police reported Saturday that the suspect set fire to two vehicles, one of which contained a gas canister that was in the synagogue parking lot.
A gas tank exploded and a police officer who rushed to the scene after the fire broke out was injured.
Investigators said two fires broke out at the synagogue’s entrance, damaging two doors but were quickly extinguished.
At that time, there were no religious services because the Sabbath was held during the Jewish holiday of Shabbat, which runs from sunset on Friday to sunset on Saturday.
The rabbi and four other people were inside the synagogue at the time of the incident, but were not injured.
France’s interim Prime Minister Gabriel Attal visited the synagogue on Saturday and said “an absolute tragedy was narrowly averted.”
“French Jews are once again being targeted and attacked for their beliefs,” Attal said.
“If the synagogue had been filled with worshippers… there would probably have been human victims.”
In early August, Darmanin said the government had tallied 887 anti-Semitic incidents across the country in 2024, nearly tripling in just one year.
After the attacks, the government announced it would increase police protection at synagogues, Jewish schools and shops across France.
