French MEP held in police custody over terror glorification probe

Rima Hassan, a far-left French Member of the European Parliament, was taken into police custody in Paris on April 2 as part of an investigation into alleged “glorification of terrorism."

The case relates to a comment Hassan posted on the social media platform X on March 26, which has since been deleted, Caliber.Az reports per French media.

Authorities say the post referenced Kōzō Okamoto, a member of the Japanese Red Army involved in the 1972 Lod Airport attack in Israel that killed 26 people.

The investigation is being led by France’s National Unit for Combating Online Hate (PNLH). According to Le Parisien, Hassan was summoned for questioning and taken into custody at the Second Judicial Police District headquarters in the French capital.

Fellow party member Jean-Luc Mélenchon confirmed the development in a post on X. The inquiry remains ongoing.

Rima Hassan had previously been investigated for publicly insulting a Socialist politician, but the case was closed.

By Sabina Mammadli