PARIS — French Jewish groups have set up a helpline to provide support to people in the community traumatized by the latest Israel-Hamas war — from families who have lost loved ones in the Middle East to parents anxious about their children’s reaction to the conflict and Holocaust survivors.
Since it was launched a few days after the deadly Oct. 7 Hamas incursion into southern Israel, dozens of people have called in every day, organizers said.
Fabien Azoulay, the deputy director general in charge of solidarity at the United Jewish Social Fund, or FSJU, which brings together many associations in France, said that over 60 psychologists, psychiatrists and child psychiatrists are volunteering to call back those who leave messages on the helpline number.
People of all ages are seeking support, from teenagers to parents and elderly people, Azoulay stressed.
For some survivors of the Holocaust, “it brings back childhood traumas they thought they’d never see again,” Azoulay said. “They see it in the country (Israel) that was supposed to be the refuge for Jews. So it’s very, very traumatic.”
The volunteers sometimes propose a longer consultation with a psychotherapist or put callers in touch with associations able to bring them social assistance when needed.
Radio of the Jewish Community, which is operated by the fund, also noted widespread mental health needs. The radio received almost 300 questions from listeners when organizing its first show about mental health issues, focusing on children’s exposure to stressful news.
Since the outbreak of the war and the subsequent uptick in antisemitism, France has deployed 7,000 additional troops and heightened security at hundreds of Jewish schools, synagogues and other places in the country.