Imam deported from France after labelling tricolore flag 'satanic' despite living in the country for 40 years

26 February 2024, 15:02 | Updated: 26 February 2024, 15:06

A Tunisian imam who allegedly called the French flag 'satanic' has been deported from the Europan country.

Mahjoub Mahjoubi, 52, was arrested and flown back to North Africa 12 hours later when his sermons were ruled to violate French values.

Born in Tunisia, Mahjoubi had lived in France since the 1980s and had raised five children in the country.

But after allegedly branding the 'tricolore' as 'satanic' and of "no value to Allah", the imam had his residency permit abolished and was sent back to his country of birth.

French officials said Mahjoubi's sermons were "retrograde" and "intolerant", and promoted a "violent" image of Islam that promoted ideas incompatible with French values.

They also said he encouraged discrimination against women and advocated "tensions with the Jewish community" and "jihadist radicalisation".

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According to his indictment, he had previously branded "Jewish people as the enemy" and wanted to see "the destruction of Western society".

As well as being an imam, Mahjoubi also runs a construction company in France.

"I will fight to return to France, where I have lived for 40 years," Mahjoubi said following his deportation.

"My lawyer is going to take legal action in France. If the court does not grant me justice, I will appeal, and then I will appeal to the European Court of Human Rights.

"I did not insult the Jewish community, nor the flag of France," he added.

Mahjoubi said his youngest child was currently undergoing treatment for cancer and depended on him financially.

Mahjoubi's deportation has been viewed as part of a wider crackdown on immigration laws by President Emmanuel Macron and the wider French government in an effort to stave off political competition from the far-Right.

Interior minister Gerald Darmanin said Mahjoubi's deportation proved that a recently passed immigration law "makes France stronger"

Darmanin also labelled Mahjoubi a "radical imam who made unacceptable comments" as he praised the supposed effectiveness of immigration laws.