France

Government & Politics

France vows response after Algeria refuses to cooperate with expulsion order Paris is seeking to deport Algerian nationals it deems a threat, but Algiers won’t take them back.

March 18, 2025   

(Politico) French Interior Minister Bruno Retailleau vowed a “gradual response” after Algeria refused Paris’ demand to readmit Algerian nationals from France that local authorities have deemed a threat and are seeking to expel. Retailleau’s threat comes after the French government last week […]

Clothing

French PM convenes Cabinet members after ministers spar over banning hijabs in sports Cracks started to appear within the government over the issue in recent days.

March 18, 2025   

(Politico) French Prime Minister François Bayrou convened key Cabinet members on Tuesday after divisions among ministers over banning athletes from wearing hijabs during sporting events spilled into public view. “There’s only one line within the government … no visible religious symbols should […]

Clerics & Preachers

France-Algeria tensions put Paris Grand Mosque’s ‘iftar for ambassadors’ in spotlight French officials and media have been concerned about ties between the mosque and Algeria amid a flaring crisis between the two countries.

March 17, 2025   

(Morocco World News) The upcoming high-level Ramadan iftar ceremony at the Grand Mosque of Paris is attracting a dramatic turn of events as the media is suspecting further tensions between Algeria and France. French news agency Agence France-Presse said the rift between […]

Clothing

French football league pauses match for players to break Islamic fast French authorities have observed an alarming offensive by the Muslim Brotherhood to impose their agenda in the world of sport.

March 17, 2025   

(European Conservative) Islamist demands in the world of sports reached a new milestone in France with the interruption of a regional football match by Muslim players for breaking the fast during Ramadan. Meanwhile, ministers are clashing over the legislative framework for wearing […]

Academics & Education

French police thwart Islamist teen’s attack plot The armed youth’s social media accounts proposed lethal 'action' during Ramadan against diplomatic, Christian, and Jewish targets.

March 14, 2025   

(European Conservative) French police arrested and charged a teenager in connection with a planned terror campaign, the National Anti-Terrorism Prosecutor’s Office (PNAT) has confirmed. The 17-year-old from Vesoul in Haute-Saône has been held since Thursday, March 13th. He is under investigation for […]

Government & Politics

Jewish advocacy groups upset ex-Carleton prof convicted in 1980 Paris synagogue bombing remains in Canada 'At a time of rising antisemitism, allowing a convicted perpetrator of a deadly antisemitic attack to remain in Canada is indefensible,' Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs' Richard Marceau told the National Post

March 13, 2025   

(National Post) A Jewish advocacy group says it is an “abuse of process” that a former Carleton University professor convicted in the 1980 bombing outside a Paris synagogue has not been extradited to France. Hassan Diab, who worked in the Ottawa-based university’s […]

Clothing

Furore in France over ad featuring Eiffel Tower in hijab Animated advert for modest clothing brand sparks controversy and Islamophobic criticism among social media users and far-right politicians

March 12, 2025   

(Middle East Eye) A new promotional video by a Dutch modest clothing brand featuring the Eiffel Tower draped in an Islamic headscarf has sparked a barrage of anti-Muslim criticism and commentary in France this week. The realistic animation by Merrachi, which caters […]

Crime

French commission approves expulsion of Algerian TikToker ‘Doualemn’ A March [6] hearing sentenced [Doualemn] to a five-month suspended prison term charging him with 'incitement to commit a crime or offense.'

March 12, 2025   

(Morocco World News) The expulsion commission in Hérault, France, issued today a favorable opinion supporting authorities’ request to expel Algerian TikToker “Doualemn.” The three-magistrate commission endorsed the previous decision to deport the Algerian social media influencer, whose previous deportation attempt sparked diplomatic […]

Academics & Education

French poll exposes alarming surge in antisemitism in schools Survey reveals Muslim students disproportionately drive tensions, with Jewish students as primary targets.

March 11, 2025   

(European Conservative) A recent survey reveals a worrying explosion of antisemitism among sections of French youth. According to the survey, Jew-hatred is clearly thriving in recent immigrant populations of the Muslim faith, contaminating an entire age group. The Institut français d’opinion publique […]

Academics & Education

French far-right politician indicted for defamation over comments about Muslim group Marion Marechal claimed on television that 'Valeurs et Reussite' linked to Muslim Brotherhood

March 11, 2025   

(Anadolu) French far-right Member of the European Parliament Marion Marechal was indicted Tuesday for defamation following her accusations against the “Valeurs et Reussite” Muslim group behind a planned Muslim school in Valence, Francebleu broadcaster reported. The indictment was issued after Marechal claimed […]

Academics & Education

Muslim private school challenges termination of its contract in French court The large amount of inspections that Al Kindi gets in comparison to Catholic schools, as well as the [school’s] claims that the court’s allegations were already addressed, puts into question whether there is [Islamophobic] bias at play.

March 10, 2025   

(Morocco World News) Al-Kindi, the only [Muslim] private high school in France and the sole Muslim institution with state partnership, is standing before the administrative court of Lyon today to appeal authorities’ decision to terminate its contract. The prefecture of Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes announced […]

Arts & Entertainment

From push-ups to propaganda: Fitness and gaming used as Islamist recruiting tools Online followers — often teens — are invited to private chat groups where they are exposed to and encouraged to share extremist and violent anti-Western jihadist propaganda.

March 7, 2025   

(European Conservative) Seven fitness influencers were arrested in Spain on January 20th, suspected of jihadist indoctrination. The arrests, the result of a months-long investigation, took place in several Spanish cities, although the operations are not all connected. At least one of those […]

Crime

Franco-Algerian crisis figure ‘Doualemn’ gets 5-month suspended term The case has become a focal point in deteriorating diplomatic relations between France and Algeria.

March 6, 2025   

(Morocco World News) Algerian TikTok influencer Boualem Naman, known as “Doualemn,” was sentenced to a five-month suspended prison term on Thursday by the Montpellier Criminal Court for “public provocation to commit a crime.” During a highly publicized hearing on February 24, the […]

Fasting

European football leagues adapt to Ramadan: Breaks for fasting players gain momentum Across Europe, an increasing number of football leagues are implementing or renewing specific measures to allow their Muslim players to break their fast during evening matches.

March 3, 2025   

(Yabiladi) Every Ramadan, a debate resurfaces among football enthusiasts and professionals about introducing breaks to allow Muslim players to break their fast. This year, several federations and leagues worldwide are extending this exceptional measure, while others, such as in France, have remained silent […]

Context

Deadly knife attack reignites France’s politically charged immigration debate How the government responds to Saturday’s tragedy will have domestic and geopolitical ramifications.

February 26, 2025   

(Politico) French Prime Minister François Bayrou will hold an emergency meeting Wednesday to draw up a response to a deadly weekend knife attack in the Alsatian city of Mulhouse. The alleged perpetrator of the incident is a 37-year-old Algerian citizen, a French […]

Context

Mulhouse terrorist had previously been jailed for October 7 support, French minister reveals 'In 2023, he was arrested a few weeks after the Hamas massacre on October 7, 2023, and convicted for promoting terrorism,' Retailleau said on X Sunday.

February 23, 2025   

(Jerusalem Post) The Algerian Islamist terrorist who murdered one and wounded several more people in Mulhouse, France, on Saturday had been arrested and convicted for promoting terrorism in the wake of the October 7 massacre, according to French Interior Minister Bruno Retailleau. […]

Academics & Education

France: Muslim private schools under threat of closure After French authorities ended the last association contract with a Muslim school, the community and its leaders denounce Islamophobic and discriminatory measures

February 3, 2025   

(Middle East Eye) More than 600 primary and secondary students at the Al Kindi private Muslim school group, located in the suburbs of Lyon, in central-eastern France, risk not returning to their school at the start of the next academic year. On […]

Crime

Ultranationalist Algerian influencers wage war on France Several online activists have been arrested over the past few weeks for inciting violence. Some have TikTok accounts with more than 400,000 followers.

January 27, 2025 and   

(Politico) Ultranationalist social media influencers from Algeria are spreading hate across France — the country that used to rule it. The trend has triggered a wave of nervousness in government in Paris, with several high-profile arrests over the past few weeks. A […]

Government & Politics

France refuses to return nationals detained in Syria to stand trial for involvement in terrorism ‘In our view, they should be tried in the nearest place to where the crimes were committed,’ says Foreign Ministry spokesperson

January 18, 2025   

(Anadolu) The French Foreign Ministry said that it does not want its nationals who are detained in northeastern Syria for their alleged membership in the Daesh/ISIS terror group to face trial in France. Anadolu asked [the] Foreign Ministry’s spokesperson Christophe Lemoine if […]

Crime

France announces arrest of new Algerian influencer amid Paris-Algiers tensions The two countries have been responding to each [other’s] accusations, with French officials calling for measures to address Algeria’s 'hostile' approaches.

January 17, 2025   

(Morocco World News) France announced on Thursday the arrest of a new Algerian influencer, identified as Mahdi B. Interior Minister Bruno Retailleau announced that police arrested the influencer on Tuesday for a video in which he allegedly showed intent to carry out […]

Government & Politics

Chief of French foreign intelligence silent about repatriating nationals detained in Syria for involvement in terrorism Nicolas Lerner observes that groups including Daesh/ISIS, Al-Qaeda becoming 'less powerful, less organized'

January 15, 2025   

(Anadolu) France’s top foreign intelligence official, Nicolas Lerner, declined to confirm whether Paris would repatriate its nationals detained in Syria for alleged links to the terrorist group Daesh/ISIS. Lerner, who heads the General Directorate of External Security (DGSE), told Le Monde that […]

Academics & Education

French Muslims decry government actions against Islamic schools Measures against Islamic schools 'widely perceived as disproportionate and unjustified,' says French Council of Muslim Worship

January 15, 2025   

(Anadolu) The French Council of Muslim Worship (CFCM) has expressed “a profound sense of injustice and discrimination” following administrative decisions impacting several private Islamic schools in France. In a statement issued Tuesday, the council criticized the recent termination of state contracts with […]

Academics & Education

France to cut state funding for Muslim high school Authorities cite alleged violations of administrative, pedagogical and 'republican' values as reason for decision

January 15, 2025   

(Anadolu) France will end state funding for a high school attended predominantly by Muslim students starting in September this year, local media reported Tuesday. Fabienne Buccio, prefect of the Auvergne-Rhone-Alpes region in southeast-central France, announced the termination of three agreements between the […]

Government & Politics

Algeria lashes out at France after failed deportation of TikTok influencer Algeria’s defiant rejection of France’s complaints reveals a regime desperately trying to deflect attention from its diplomatic failures by blaming 'far-right' French officials.

January 11, 2025   

(Morocco World News) In a combative response that further strains diplomatic relations, Algeria rejected French accusations of “escalation” and “humiliation” on Saturday, January 11, after refusing to accept a deported Algerian social media influencer. The latest diplomatic row erupted when Algerian authorities […]

Academics & Education

Man convicted of deadly synagogue bombing in France not teaching at Carleton this semester In the fall, Hassan Diab taught a course that referenced his own Canadian extradition case. Carleton said this week he no longer works there

January 10, 2025   

(National Post) Hassan Diab, the Ottawa sociology professor who was convicted in absentia in 2023 of a deadly synagogue bombing in France, is “not currently employed” at Carleton University, the school says. In the fall, Diab taught a course at Carleton called […]

Government & Politics

Algeria rejects France-expelled influencer, sparks outrage France launched a campaign cracking down on influencers who are inciting hatred through images, videos, or texts, confirming the country’s commitment to combat extremism.

January 10, 2025   

(Morocco World News) Former French officials, netizens, and activists have condemned Algeria’s refusal to accept the return of an Algerian influencer, who France expelled on Thursday. French police arrested the influencer known as Doualemn on TikTok on Sunday in Montpellier, after he […]