Israel-Hamas war: ten months suspended sentence required against footballer Youcef Atal for provoking hatred

2023-12-18 19:23:31

In October he relayed a video on Instagram calling for “a black day for the Jews”. The prosecution requested a ten-month suspended prison sentence against the Algerian player of OGC Nice, Youcef Atal, during his trial on Monday where the international defender was on trial for “incitement to hatred”. The prosecutor also requested a fine of 45,000 euros and the obligation to post the court decision on her social network account for one month.

Youcef Atal apologized after relaying on his account, followed by 3.2 million people, the video of a preacher, Mahmoud Al Hasanat, evoking the fate of the children of Gaza in the war which has opposed Israel and Hamas since on October 7 before calling on God to send “a dark day upon the Jews.”

The 27-year-old player, suspended until further notice by his club and sanctioned with a seven-match suspension by the Professional Football League (LFP), affirmed on the stand that he had not viewed the entire sequence before sharing it.

“I really thought it was a message of peace, that’s the truth. With hindsight, I tell myself that this is important stuff and I should have watched the video until the end, he explained during the hearing, according to comments reported by RMC. I regret this. I would just like to add that I am not against anyone, I am only a footballer. I am against hatred. »

“Relaying this type of message leads to real acts of violence”

“Words have weight. Relaying this type of message leads to real acts of violence which have already devastated all of France and other countries,” said the prosecutor. The judgment was reserved until January 3 at 1:30 p.m.

Several political leaders denounced this video, immediately after it was shared. Video that the player quickly deleted with an apology. But, contacted by the prefect and the mayor of Nice, the public prosecutor of Nice Damien Martinelli opened a preliminary investigation on October 16.

Initially, it also targeted the leader of the apology for terrorism. After examining the video and following a hearing with the player, who was placed in police custody on November 23 and 24, the courts ultimately only found incitement to hatred based on religion.