The prefect of Hérault contacted the public prosecutor this Saturday, January 4, after a video published by an Algerian influencer living in Montpellier. The latter is accused of inciting hatred and having made anti-Semitic remarks. Legal action could be taken against him.
After “Zazou Youcef” and “Imad Tintin”, a third Algerian influencer, living in Montpellier and followed by 138,000 subscribers on TikTok, is in the sights of the authorities. The latter, whose pseudonym is “Doualemn”, is accused of having incited hatred and of having made anti-Semitic remarks through a video published on the platform.
Indeed, the prefect of Hérault became aware of this video this Saturday, January 4 at the end of the morning. “It is intolerable”, judged the prefect, specifying that he “immediately referred the matter to the public prosecutor on the basis of article 40 so that legal action could be taken with regard to these comments”.
“I will also act on the administrative level,” he added. For his part, the mayor of Montpellier, Michaël Delafosse, also reacted to the publication of such a video on the TikTok platform, indicating that he too had contacted the public prosecutor so that the individual could answer for his actions before the courts.
“Incitement to hatred is an offense as such, this video leaves no doubt, I am making a report under article 40 of the Penal Code to the judicial authority of Montpellier,” wrote the editor on his X account.
According to Algerian activist Chawki Benzehra, “Doualemn” would target, through his words, “those who wanted to demonstrate on January 1st against the Algerian regime and a young activist whose death he wants because a person named Cohen shared his video. This “sounds like an anathema in today’s Algeria, crossed by rampant anti-Semitism,” the activist detailed.
Asked by CNEWS, the Montpellier public prosecutor’s office has not yet responded.
Two Algerian influencers arrested
Still in the same context, two other Algerian influencers were arrested. The first, “Zazou Youcef”, was arrested, as well as the man who housed him, in Brest on Friday. The influencer is accused of calling for attacks. During his police custody, “Zazou Youcef” admitted to being the author of the videos and declared that “his message was intended for the Algerian community and that it targeted opponents of the regime in place in Algeria”.
He was placed in pre-trial detention and will be tried in Brest for “public apology for an act of terrorism committed by means of an online public communication service”, the Brest prosecutor’s office announced this Saturday in a press release, adding that the man faces a sentence of 7 years of imprisonment and a fine of 100,000 euros.
The second individual arrested, this time in Grenoble, is “Imadtintin”, whose real name is Imad OB According to the Minister of the Interior, this 31-year-old influencer had published a video, accumulating more than 858,000 views, where he called for “ burn alive, kill and rape on French soil.
This was then withdrawn following the arrest of the other influencer “Zazou Youcef”, but some screenshots of the video in question are nevertheless circulating on social networks.
“I swear to Allah, we are going to rape you all, in Algeria and in France. Here, those who know how to handle weapons will finish you off (…) No one will defend you in France,” indicated “Imadtintin” in his video.
The Grenoble prosecutor, Eric Vaillant, explained this Saturday that the suspect’s custody has been extended and that he faces a sentence of 7 years’ imprisonment and a fine of 100,000 euros. “The facts were reclassified as direct provocation of an act of terrorism committed by means of an online public communication service,” said the magistrate.
