Former judge denounces 'misuse' of the 'apology for terrorism' offence in France
Former French anti-terror judge Marc Trevidic said in an interview published on Wednesday that the increase in prosecutions for “apology for terrorism” in France since Israel’s war on Gaza constitutes "a real abuse" and a "totally misuse of the law".
"We can now claim that the bombings on Gaza are legitimate without being prosecuted," or being prosecuted within the framework of the press law, which includes many constraints for prosecution, "while a simple tag in support for Palestine makes you risk prison," he said.
Trevidic, who was in favour in the 2010s of a more severe repression of this offense, said France should "dare to backtrack" on this issue.
Created in 2006, the “apology for terrorism” offence falls under press law and therefore freedom of expression before being transferred to common law in 2014 to be punished more severely. The penalty incurred is five years in prison, seven in the event of online publication.
Since 7 October 2023, the number of reports and complaints for "apology for terrorism" has skyrocketed. At the end of April, the Paris prosecutor's office, which handles the majority of these cases, had 386 referrals related to this conflict.
In comparison, for the year 2022, the online hate unit had been contacted 500 times, all cases combined.
"We are seeing sentences raining down, sometimes very harsh, up to several years in prison," Trevidic said in the columns of the daily newspaper L’Humanité.
"We are in a real abuse, a totally perverted use of the law," he added.