He chose the social network Twitter to lead his fight.
For several days, Idriss Sihamedi, the founder of the Islamic humanitarian association BarakaCity whose headquarters is in Evry-Courcouronnes (Essonne) since 2012, has been engaging on the social network, where he is followed by nearly 29,000 Internet users, to a series of tweets targeting the writer and former journalist of "Charlie Hebdo", Zineb El Rhazoui, whom he accuses of being Islamophobic.
Accusations made with the hashtag #balancezinebelrhazoui today escalated to the highest services of the State.
In a tweet, Gerald Darmanin, the Minister of the Interior, gave his support to Zineb El Rhazoui after Idriss Sihamedi's posts.
Thibault de Montbrial, lawyer for the journalist, reported all the tweets to the social network for them to be deleted.
I express my full support for @ZinebElRhazoui, target of ultra violent networks which threaten his integrity and that of his family.
- Gérald DARMANIN (@GDarmanin) September 24, 2020
“The intimidation campaign led by this man is particularly filthy, tackle, contacted by
the Parisian
, the former Prime Minister and ex-mayor of Evry, Manuel Valls.
He attacks privacy by disclosing specific names and places ... This is what led the deputy
(Editor's note: Francis Chouat, his successor)
to seize the Minister of the Interior.
"
"Several investigations in progress", according to Manuel Valls
This is not the first time that the former Prime Minister and the association manager have railed against each other.
"Several investigations into the functioning of the association are in progress, ensures Manuel Valls, without wanting to disclose the content.
Let justice do its job.
"
“Investigations, there must be many, adds the former mayor of Evry-Courcouronnes and current deputy for the constituency, Francis Chouat (LREM).
This man attached to the most nauseating radical Islamism has long since gone far beyond the borders of the headquarters of his association.
What he is doing against Zineb El Rhazoui and Zohra Bitan, two anti-Islamist activists, is odious.
We are now very far from simple questions about the activities of the association.
"
"It is simply unacceptable"
At the end of the line, the deputy underlines the particular context in which this harassment occurs: "We are in the middle of the trial of the attacks of January 2015, last week, the HRD of
Charlie Hebdo
had to be exfiltrated from his home so much she received threats and Friday, a new attack took place rue Nicolas-Appert, close to the former premises of
Charlie Hebdo
.
It is simply unacceptable.
"
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BarakaCity: diving into the heart of a controversial association
Because the founder of BarakaCity is not at his first coup.
In 2015, the police, intrigued by the overflight of a drone, carried out a first search of the premises of the association.
“Staff, guests and donors were searched as well as candidates present for a job interview, regretted at the time officials.
Twitter and Facebook accounts have been peeled, computers sifted and religious books photographed.
"
A few months later, a new search at the request of the prefect.
On the decree published at the time by the association, the State services justify the procedure in these terms: “Fundamentalist Muslim members regularly travel to Syria as part of their humanitarian activity, […] he there are serious reasons to believe that there are people, weapons or objects linked to terrorist activities.
Four years later, the investigation was dismissed by the Evry prosecutor's office.
He had declared "not to shake hands with women"
In January 2016, while he was a guest on the set of the show "Le Supplément" on Canal +, Idriss Sihamedi once again shocked public opinion.
Invited to discuss the fate of one of his humanitarian workers imprisoned in Bangladesh, the founder of BarakaCity, to whom a columnist asked if he condemned the abuses of the Islamic State, had hesitated for a long time before lip service to his distance with "barbarism".
A few minutes earlier, as a “normal Muslim”, he had declared “like some rabbis not to shake hands with women”.
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Contacted, Idriss Sihamedi did not respond to our requests.
He announced, still via his favorite social network, that he was going to sue the current Minister of the Interior and Manuel Valls who spoke about him this Monday morning in an interview with RMC.
No complaint has yet been escalated to the prosecution.
