In the midst of a political crisis between Algeria and Francethe Grand Mosque of Paris (GMP) denounces “with the greatest firmness” what it considers to be an “intolerable slanderous campaign” which targets it.
In a press release released this Monday, January 6 and signed by its rector Chems-Eddine Hafiz, the Grand Mosque of Paris pointed the finger at the French television channel CNews and “a few low-level personalities”.
While calling on all French citizens to “commit to appeasement” in a context marked by the worsening of the crisis between Algeria and France, the religious institution says it reserves the right to take legal action against “any false allegation disseminated by CNews, or by other media”.
Algerian activist Chawki Benzehra was cited by name in the press release. Invited this weekend on CNews, he “launched serious accusations by asserting that our institution sought to destabilize France,” writes the Paris Mosque, which also recalls that, a few days earlier, the former French ambassador in Algeria, Xavier Driencourt, “known for his blind hostility against the country where he served”, was invited on the same media to give a similar speech.
While rejecting them “entirely”, the Grand Mosque of Paris considers that “these defamatory remarks” are part of “CNews’ global strategy aimed at discriminating against all Muslims in France, to deny them the simple right to exist in our country, and to spread the poison of the extreme right in our society.”
France: the Paris Mosque accuses CNews and the far-right
For the institution headed by the Franco-Algerian Chems-Eddine Hafiz, this campaign “is not a coincidence”, but the result in part of the positions taken by the Paris Mosque, notably during the legislative elections last summer where she called for a barrier to the far-right.
In its press release, it denounces the action of certain small groups and extremist ideologues who are leading “a sneaky campaign” to try to “destabilize” it and expresses its regret for “the absence of contradiction and the silence of the French authorities”.
“A century-old building” and governed by an association under French law, the Grand Mosque of Paris assumes its “strong and historical links with Algeria”, and “in perfect agreement with the French State and in complete coherence with the virtuous and universal values of the institution.
The Grand Mosque of Paris has played, since its creation, “a constructive and positive role for the relationship between the two countries”, she recalls, while emphasizing that it “intends to remain an independent institution, carrying the voice of Islam and all Muslims in France, fraternally open to others and to the world by cultivating links with many countries, including Algeria.
