Three Romanians were seriously injured and their car burned down in a lynch attempt by dozens of people in Marseilles last Saturday. The Romanians found refuge in a snack bar were they hid until police arrived and saved them, using tear gas and flash balls.
The reason for the lynch is a rumor which has been going about the city, that Fatima (20), a young woman who had disappeared in early May had been found dead and that the body was missing a kidney, the victim of Roma organ traffickers. The rumor is also being passed about via SMS and through blogs who call to crush the Roma.
In this incident, about sixty people attacked the Romanians after a child reported they had been approached by the three.
The Police insist there have not been child abductions or organ trafficking in Marseilles. There have been other attacks on Romanians in the city in recent weeks, though none this serious.
Sources: La Provence, TF1 (French), h/t François Desouche