Anti-Muslim graffiti found on French mosque

Police say assailants have scrawled a Nazi slogan and hung pig feet on a mosque in southern France.

Interior Minister Brice Hortefeux has denounced the "vile and racist desecration" of the mosque in the town of Castres.

Police say the swastika in black paint and slogans including Hitler salute "Sieg Heil" in German, "France to the French" in French, and "White Power" in English were scrawled on the mosque.

Hortefeux said Sunday any person found responsible for the overnight desecration should be "severely punished."

The desecrated mosque (Photo: AFP)

Assailants sporadically scrawl anti-Muslim or anti-Semitic graffiti on religious sites, cultural centers and cemeteries in France - home to western Europe's largest populations of both Muslims and Jews.

Ironically, Minister Hortefeux addressed the matter during a meeting with heads of the Jewish employers and employees' union in France. He stated that he intends to appoint a clerk to coordinate the war on racism and anti-Semitism, which he said was "a poison to our republic."

Hortefeux awarded the union with a prize for its efforts against racism and anti-Semitism. He noted that in 2009's first nine months the number of anti-Semitic incidents had doubled compared with the previous year.

According to the minister, 704 racist and anti-Semitic incidents have occurred between January and September, compared with only 350 incidents in 2008.

In 2002, when French President Nicolas Sarkozy acted as interior minister, France created a program for the preservation of Jewish heritage and worship sites.

Hortefeux stated that since then some 15 million euros have been invested in securing 349 buildings, including 107 Jewish schools and kindergartens and 81 Jewish centers and synagogues. In addition, closed circuit television networks have been created and alarms have been placed at various locations.

The Associated Press and AFP contributed to this report