The protest was part of a growing European movement rejecting the use of cultural diplomacy to soften the image of wartime governments.
French police arrested four people in Paris on Thursday evening after several audience members interrupted a performance by the Israeli Philharmonic Orchestra at the Philharmonie de Paris, where small flares were briefly lit inside the hall.
Videos shared on social media show a spectator igniting a flare during the performance. The flare was quickly put out.
The protest took place amid growing calls across Europe to oppose cultural, artistic and sporting events representing Israel, as the country continues its devastating war on the Gaza Strip.
During a performance by the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra in Paris, protesters disrupted the event in opposition to Israel’s actions in Gaza, leading police to arrest four people. pic.twitter.com/nWEYzMzH0c
— Quds News Network (@QudsNen) November 7, 2025
Demonstrations and boycotts have become a common form of political expression for artists, students, and civil society groups who argue that Israeli state institutions should not be presented as “cultural ambassadors” following Israel’s genocidal war on Gaza.
Ahead of the concert, BDS France criticized the Philharmonie for hosting the Israeli orchestra, describing the event as “an act of normalizing a colonial and genocidal state.”
The group argued that cultural institutions should not be used “to burnish the image of a state engaged in the destruction of the Palestinian people.”
Despite the peaceful nature of most demonstrations around such events, French authorities and political leaders framed the disruption in criminal terms. Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez said he “firmly condemned” the incident, claiming that police had “quickly intervened to arrest several troublemakers inside the hall and to contain demonstrators outside.”
The Philharmonie de Paris also issued a statement condemning the protest and announced it had filed a legal complaint. According to the institution, “on three occasions, ticketed spectators attempted to disrupt the concert in various ways, including twice using flares.” The statement noted that the concert was briefly halted but that “the persons responsible were escorted from the hall,” and the event later resumed and concluded.
However, Agence Média Palestine, which reported on the incident and interviewed attendees, stated that several protesters were physically attacked by other spectators while attempting what the group described as a nonviolent, symbolic intervention to denounce the war on Gaza.
The outlet wrote that protesters were “violently grabbed, hit, and dragged” by members of the audience, not by security personnel.
The French government positioned the demonstration as an attack on cultural freedom. Culture Minister Rachida Dati wrote on X that “the freedom of creation and programming is among the values of the Republic” and claimed that “there is no excuse to justify anti-Semitism.”
(PC, French media)
