PARIS -- The number of racist, xenophobic and anti-Semitic incidents in France dropped by nearly a quarter last year, a report by a government human rights commission said Friday.

France's north African immigrants are targeted more than other groups by hate violence, according to the national advisory commission for human rights.

In 2007, 707 racist, xenophobic and anti-Semitic attacks, threats and other incidents were registered, a 23.5 percent drop from the previous year.

But the commission reacted cautiously to the decline, saying that the figures were still higher than those registered during the 1990-2000 period.

There was notably a decline in anti-Semitism, with 386 incidents registered in 2007, almost a third fewer than the previous year.

The commission had reported a 35 percent jump in the number of anti-Semitic attacks and other incidents between 2005 and 2006.

The report noted that Middle East tensions had "almost no influence on violence and anti-Semitic threats in France in 2007", contrary to previous years.