A knife-wielding attacker threatened three young Jewish men in the Trocadéro gardens in Paris on Friday evening, the Paris Prosecutor's Office told The Jerusalem Post on Sunday.
The three kippah-clad Jewish men in their twenties were heading back from a Rue Longchamp synagogue at around 7:20 pm when a man approached them and asked if they were Jewish.
When they confirmed they were Jewish, the man pulled a knife from his pocket, shouting "Israelite." The three men fled. While one tripped and fell on the way, they escaped uninjured and sought refuge with nearby policemen.
Mayor strongly condemns incident
Jérémy Redler, mayor of the 16th arrondissement of Paris, condemned the incident strongly and offered the victims his support.
"I will continue to fight tirelessly against antisemitism," he added.
The Paris Prosecutor's Office has opened an investigation into acts of violence involving a weapon and motivated by religion, resulting in a total work incapacity of less than eight days.
The investigation has been entrusted to the police station of the 16th arrondissement. Efforts are also being made to identify and arrest the suspect.