"We should not give an inch, we should continue wearing the kippa," Korsia said, reacting to a call by Zvi Ammar, head of the Israelite Consistory in Marseille, which has witnessed a string of attacks on Jews recently.
Roger Cukierman, the head of France's umbrella grouping of Jewish organisations, CRIF, agreed with Korsia, telling AFP that Ammar's advice reflected "a defeatist attitude."
After a machete attack yesterday on a Jewish teacher wearing a skullcap Ammar had urged: "Remove the kippa during this troubled time until better days."
The teacher escaped with minor injuries.