France has deported Mahjoub Mahjoubi, a Tunisian cleric, just 12 hours after his arrest over accusations of disparaging the French flag as satanic. He was expelled to North Africa on Thursday, February 22.
Mr. Mahjoubi had gone viral on social media after apparently referring to France’s three-coloured flag as ‘satanic’.
Despite residing in France since the 1980s and raising five children there, Mr. Mahjoubi, lacking French citizenship, had his residency permit revoked, leading to his deportation.
The official order for his expulsion cited his sermons for promoting a “retrograde, intolerant, and violent” version of Islam, inciting actions contrary to French values, and fostering discrimination against women, tensions with the Jewish community, and jihadist radicalization.
According to the indictment, the imam referred to “the Jewish people as the enemy” and called for “the destruction of Western society”. He also allegedly described the tricolore – without saying he meant the French flag – as of “no value to Allah”.
In response, Mr Mahjoubi, who runs a construction company, claimed it had been a slip of the tongue, adding,
”I will fight to return to France, where I have lived for 40 years.
“My lawyer is going to take legal action in France, if the court does not grant me justice, I will appeal, and then I will appeal to the European Court of Human Rights.
“I did not insult the Jewish community, nor the flag of France.”
He said his family, including his youngest child who is in hospital for cancer treatment, depended entirely on him.
Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin defended the deportation, stating, “Firmness is the rule,” and highlighting the recently enacted immigration law aimed at reinforcing France’s migration policies.
Mr. Mahjoubi criticized his expulsion as arbitrary, accusing Mr. Darmanin of exploiting his case to “create a buzz around the immigration law”.
| LIB
