“A dark day for the Jews”: Youcef Atal sentenced to eight months in prison and 45,000 euros fine

Youcef Attal, here in the Algeria jersey, is a player for OGC Nice. MAXPPP – Johan Nilsson

Youcef Atal, Algerian international footballer for OGC Nice, was sentenced on Wednesday to eight months in prison and fined 45,000 euros for sharing a video calling for “one day black on the Jews, against a backdrop of conflict between Israel and Hamas.

Prosecuted for provoking hatred on grounds of religion, he will also have to publish this conviction at his own expense in the regional daily Nice-Matin and in the newspaper Le Monde, said the Nice criminal court.

This judgment is in line with the requisitions. During the trial on December 18, the prosecution requested ten months suspended prison sentence, a 45,000 euro fine and the publication of the conviction for one month on the home page of the defender's Instagram account. des Aiglons, which exceeds 3.2 million subscribers.

Called up to the "Fennecs" national team. in view of the African Cup of Nations (CAN) which begins next week in Ivory Coast, the 27-year-old player was absent from the deliberations, like his lawyer.

Publication withdrawn

Five days after the unprecedented attacks by the Palestinian Islamist movement Hamas against Israel on October 7 and the start of Israel's bombing of Gaza, Atal shared on Instagram the video of a preacher, Mahmoud Al Hasanat.

The latter first spoke, moved to tears, of the fate of the children of Gaza under the bombs. Then he toughened his tone and called on God to send "a dark day on the Jews" and to "accompany the hand" residents of Gaza if they "throw the stone".

Atal was in Algeria, with the national team, when he shared this video. Warned by OGC Nice of the controversial nature of the remarks, he withdrew it the next day, with a message of apology.

In court, the player apologized again, repeating over and over again that he had wanted to send "a message of peace" and that he had not watched the video to the end before sharing it.

Sharing is "giving visibility"

Since the video lasts only 35 seconds, the argument had not convinced either the vice-prosecutor, Meggi Choutia, nor the civil parties, mainly Jewish organizations and the Professional Football League (LFP).

"These are serious facts, which must not be trivialized. Sharing a video means taking credit for the comments and giving them visibility, Ms. Choutia declared in her indictment: "At no time, during these 35 seconds, there is no question of peace.

But for his lawyer, Me Antoine Vey, "he sent a message of support to the Palestinians in Gaza. For him this is peace, and he is not the only one.

🚨🚨 Youcef Atal est condamné à 𝟴 𝗺𝗼𝗶𝘀 𝗱𝗲 𝗽𝗿𝗶𝘀𝗼𝗻 𝗮𝘃𝗲𝗰 𝘀𝘂𝗿𝘀𝗶𝘀 pour provocation à la haine.

Il a également écopé d'une amende de 45 000 €.

Pour rappel, il avait partagé une vidéo appelant à « un jour noir sur les juifs », sur fond de conflit Israël-Hamas. pic.twitter.com/L8jnUQkQRe

— Actu Foot (@ActuFoot_) January 3, 2024

Youcef Atal, who has played for Ligue 1 club Nice since 2018, has not reappeared in the Aiglons jersey since this publication, suspended first ' quot;until further notice" by his club, then for seven matches by the LFP disciplinary committee, a sanction now served.

A fast and offensive right-back, he has on the other hand started in the three matches played by Algeria since the publication of the video and has received a lot of support in his country.

"I am not anti-Semitic. I am neither against Jews nor against Christians, I have no hatred against anyone,” he insisted at the audience, recalling that unlike many athletes in the Arab world , he did not hesitate to play in Tel Aviv with Nice, in the summer of 2022 in the European Cup.