Gang Attacks Mother on French Train

In a display of misplaced anti-semitism and cowardice, the AP tells the story of a young mother assaulted on a train, apparently because the attackers mistook her as a Jew.

A gang of young men attacked a woman riding a suburban train with her infant, cutting her hair and drawing swastikas on her stomach. Other passengers watched but did nothing, police reported.

French politicians issued denunciations Sunday as news of the Friday morning attack spread through the nation.

Police said the gang of six set upon the 23-year-old woman on a suburban train north of Paris and grabbed her backpack where they found identity papers that showed an address in the capital's well-to-do 16th district. "There are only Jews in the 16th," one of the group of attackers said.

The young woman, who was not identified, was not Jewish and no longer lived in the district, police said.

Ah, France, the great bastion of freedom and justice. Of course, here is the part that does not surprise me:

According to the police account, none of the passengers on the train came to the woman's rescue.

EDIT: It seems the whole story was fraudulent. This lady may be nuts, but she seems to have a good read on her fellow French, nevertheless.

French President Jacques Chirac had called the alleged attack shameful. But during his annual Bastille Day television interview, following the woman's retraction, he called the whole affair regrettable.

But Mr. Chirac said he does not regret his earlier condemnation of the alleged incident. He said France is currently in a period of racist acts against Jews, Muslims, and others. He said the attacks are unacceptable and violate the country's principles.