The 57-year-old man, in the sights of Gérald Darmanin who signed the expulsion order himself on July 29, is accused by the French authorities of having launched calls for hatred and violence aimed in particular the Jewish community.
The Minister of the Interior again justified his expulsion on Cnews on Thursday, judging that he had made “openly anti-Semitic, openly xenophobic, openly homophobic, openly anti-women remarks” during sermons or conferences held there. almost 20 years for some.
His lawyer, Lucie Simon, seized the ECHR, which sits in Strasbourg, on Wednesday, considering that the expulsion measure violated several provisions of the European Convention on Human Rights on the prohibition of torture and inhuman and degrading treatment. , the right to respect for private and family life, freedom of thought, conscience and religion, and freedom of expression.
The ECHR, which did not justify its decision in its press release, rejected his request, explaining that it only grants interim suspension measures “in exceptional cases”, when the applicant is exposed “to a real risk irreparable damage”. What she seems to consider does not correspond to the situation of Hassan Iquioussen.
Me Simon has, in parallel, seized “in chambers”, that is to say urgently, the administrative court of Paris to obtain the suspension of the expulsion of his client.
The League for Human Rights (LDH), while disapproving of the imam’s remarks “to the highest degree and without any reservations”, indicated in a press release that it would intervene “voluntarily in support of the request” by calling for “respect for the law”. The LDH argues that he was born in France, “has always lived there and founded his family” and “has never been the subject of any criminal conviction”.
The hearing began at 2:00 p.m. and the decision should fall by the end of the week.
Morocco has already issued a consular pass to France earlier this week.
Me Lucie Simon refused to specify the current location of her client, registered in the “RPF”, the file of wanted persons.
– “Made of prince” –
The announcement of the coming expulsion of the imam, very active on social networks, in particular on his YouTube channel followed by 169,000 people and his Facebook page with 42,000 subscribers, sparked a series of protests.
In a press release, 31 mosques in Hauts-de-France supported the preacher, believing that he was the victim of a “manifest error of assessment”.
While attributing to him “a particularly conservative vision of religion” and conceptions that “many find retrograde”, the Hauts-de-France section of the LDH pointed out that the reasons “invoked by the executive go back to about twenty years. years, i.e. a time prior to several renewals of his residence permit”.
LFI deputy David Guiraud criticized this expulsion resulting, according to him, “from the act of the prince”, as a “deviation from the rule of law”, while affirming “not to be in solidarity with homophobic or anti-Semitic remarks”, held by the preacher .
Gérald Darmanin accused him Thursday on Cnews of “defending” the imam and demanded an “apology” from his party.
Born in France, in Denain, and living near Valenciennes, Hassan Iquioussen had decided at his majority, according to Mr. Darmanin, not to choose French nationality. He claims to have given it up at the age of 16 under the influence of his father, and then to have tried in vain to recover it.
After having requested this winter the renewal of his residence permit for ten years, Mr. Iquioussen had received on May 3 notification of a form of engagement of an expulsion procedure, according to his lawyer.
The departmental commission for the expulsion of foreigners from the North had given a favorable opinion on his expulsion on June 22.
