A French journalist has been slammed for making an unprovoked anti-Muslim 9/11 remark on Twitter.
French broadcaster BFM TV shared a video clip hosted by a headscarved Muslim woman offering budget-friendly meal recipes for students.
Judith Weintraub, who works for the right-wing Le Figaro Magazine, retweeted the post with a comment: "September 11," as though to draw attention to the fact the video was shared on the anniversary of the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks in the United States.
Many users condemned Weintraub as bigotted for associating the terror attacks with a Muslim woman hosting an innocuous video on a subject relevant to the start of the academic year.
French researcher specializing in religious freedom, Rim Sarah-Alouane, commented that the remark was indicative of a country in which "anti-Muslim bigotry is so in the open that one can make this kind of comment without any consequences on their career."
France is home to between 5 million and 6 million Muslims, according to the latest studies, making it the second-largest religion in the country after Christianity with the largest Muslim community in Europe.
In January, the National Observatory of Islamophobia said anti-Muslim attacks in France had jumped by 54% in 2019.
There were 100 attacks against Muslims in France in 2018, and the number increased to 154 in 2019
