Another deportation as France shows zero tolerance for radical preachers

Tunisian imam Mahjoub Mahjoubi was recently expelled from France for alleged hate speech under an accelerated procedure made possible by the country’s tough new immigration laws. In a crackdown on Islamist fundamentalism, France has ejected a string of foreign imams whose preaching has been deemed a threat.

An imam at the Attawba mosque in Bagnols-sur-Cèze, in the south of France, Mahjoubi was deported on 22 February in a decision that he said was politically motivated.

Interior Minister Gérald Darmanin ordered his expulsion after footage emerged of Mahjoubi appearing to preach hate and anti-France sentiment during a sermon in early February.

In an extract widely circulated on social media, Mahjoubi described the “tricolors” – a term often used to refer to the French flag – as “satanic” and “of no value with Allah”.

The deportation order was also based on previous sermons during which Mahjoubi is alleged to have encouraged discrimination against women, hatred of Jews and the destruction of Western society.

Mahjoubi moved to France in 1986. While he has a residence permit, the 52-year-old does not hold French citizenship.

He was arrested on 22 February at his home on charges of “inciting terrorism”. His permit and passport were removed, and he was put on a flight to Tunis that evening.

The court ruled that the imam’s remarks did not fall within France’s “framework of the values” and that they set Muslims against non-Muslims, incited hatred towards Jews and Israel, and advocated for jihad and Sharia law.

But that’s the only change.