Eleven arrested for placing pigs’ heads near French mosques and other hate crimes

Serbian nationals also accused by Serbian police of defacing Jewish sites, as French officials investigate foreign interference

Serbian police have arrested 11 people, accusing them of inciting hatred" in France and Germany, and linking them to acts that include placing pigs' heads near mosques and defacing Jewish sites.

The arrests came days after French prosecutors said foreign interference was probably to blame for a spate of provocative acts that had targeted Jewish and Muslim sites in France in recent years, as tensions run high over the war in Gaza. French officials have previously said they were investigating Russia's role in destabilising operations that have stoked social tensions and sown division in France.