The 57-year-old man’s expulsion order was motivated by his “hateful remarks towards France”, according to Gérald Darmanin. The Minister of the Interior has announced that he is appealing the decision.
The administrative court of Paris suspended Friday the expulsion towards Morocco of the imam of North Hassan Iquioussen, which had been ordered by the ministry of the Interior, estimating that it would carry a “disproportionate harm“to his”private and family life“.
Interior Minister Gérald Darmanin immediately announced his intention to appeal this decision to the Council of State. He announced last week the forthcoming expulsion of this preacher born in France but of Moroccan nationality, accused by the French authorities of having made anti-Semitic, homophobic and “anti womenduring sermons or conferences, held almost 20 years ago for some.
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“The sole reason based on the existence of acts of explicit and deliberate incitement to discrimination against women cannot (can) justify the expulsion measure without seriously and manifestly disproportionate interference with her right to lead a normal private and family“, considered the court in its judgment, of which AFP obtained a copy.
As soon as the decision of the administrative court was known, the Minister of the Interior argued in a press release that he was “determined to fight against those who make and disseminate comments of an anti-Semitic nature and contrary to equality between men and women“.
Born in France
The court notably recalled that the 57-year-old imam was “born in France where he has resided since birth with his wife and five French children and fifteen French grandchildren“.
“Mr. Iquioussen thanks French justice for having kept a cool head despite the media coverage of this case“Reacted his lawyer, Lucie Simon, to AFP, welcoming”a measured and healthy decision“, the court having in particular “rejected the conspiratorial remarks, considering that the latter, as regrettable as they are, were not in the legal sense an explicit incitement to hatred“. The lawyer added that she had filed a motion on the merits with the administrative court.
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“On behalf of the family, we are very happy with this decision.“, reacted for AFP one of the sons of the preacher, Sofiane Iquioussen. “He is not at home at the moment, he preferred to go to rest“, he added, claiming to ignore where his father was. The latter is no longer attached to a mosque, but preaches “in different mosques», particularly in the Paris region, «where asked“, he specified.
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