A Jewish community outside Paris was left reeling after thieves stole at least 12 Sifrei Torah during a carefully orchestrated overnight break-in at the Grand Synagogue of Levallois.

The shocking theft was discovered Monday morning by the shul’s Rav, Rav Chalom Lellouche, as he was preparing the shul for a bar mitzvah celebration, according to the French newspaper Le Parisien.

Authorities were immediately alerted, and police have launched an investigation into the burglary.

Despite the shul being equipped with security cameras and an extensive surveillance system, preliminary findings indicate that two suspects managed to break into the building and make off with the Sifrei Torah in what investigators believe was a meticulously planned operation.

Levallois Mayor Agnès Pottier-Dumas condemned the theft, saying the Jewish community had been attacked “at what is most sacred and precious to it.”

{Matzav.com}