Foreign nationals who quickly left France are being investigated for pigs’ heads outside mosques in the Paris region, an act deemed to demonstrate a “clear desire to cause unrest”, according to the Paris prosecutor.

The incident occurred on Tuesday when nine pigs’ heads were discovered outside several mosques. The incident raised concerns over escalating anti-Muslim sentiment, Prosecutors have initiated a probe into the matter.

A farmer from Normandy reported that two individuals in a vehicle with apparent Serbian license plates purchased several pigs’ heads from him.

Video surveillance confirmed that these men arrived in Paris in the same vehicle before placing the heads outside multiple mosques.

The prosecutor’s office noted the suspects likely used Croatian phone line, which was traced crossing the French-Belgian border on Tuesday morning shortly after the incident.

Paris police chief Laurant Nunez stated that authorities have opened an investigation into incitement to hatred aggravated by racial or religious discrimination.

The act is particularly provocative, as pork consumption is considered haram, or forbidden, in Islam. Notably, several of the heads had the surname of President Emmaniel Macron scrawled on them in blue ink.

Nunez has suggested potential links to previous instances of “foreign interference”, recalling a case from early June where three Serbs were charged for vandalizing Jewish sites, believed to have Russian backing.

France has the largest Muslim community in the European Union and the largest Jewish population outside Israel and the United States.

Reports from several EU nations indicate a rise in anti-Muslim hatred and antisemitism since the outbreak of the Gaza conflict in October 2023, following Hamas attack on Israel on October 7.