The Mosque Crime In France Exposes Retailleau's Racism.
The handling of the horrific murder of a member of the Muslim community in a mosque in France by the French Interior Minister, Bruno Retailleau, revealed that the minister in François Bayrou's government practices discrimination based on religion and race among French people. This fact has been reached by various political and media circles in France.
The Interior Minister, who is also the Minister of Religions in France, did not visit the mosque where the horrific crime occurred until two days later. This was considered an unacceptable misstep and a resounding scandal for the French state (because Retailleau is a minister representing the Republic), which was not only criticized by his political opponents but also by media outlets known for their loyalty to the right and far-right, such as 'BFM TV'.
In a talk show, journalist Benjamin Duhamel of the aforementioned television channel asked Retailleau, 'Why did your visit to the mosque where the crime occurred take two days, and you only expressed your position hours later with a tweet on the 'X' platform, while you continued your party work normally?' The minister's response was weak and unconvincing to the journalist: 'I waited until I was sure and received the investigation elements.'
Then the journalist surprised Minister Rotaio with a similar incident, but he acted differently, as happened in a crime that occurred one day before the mosque crime in the city of Nantes, where a high school student there was fatally stabbed. Retailleau, along with the Minister of Education, former Prime Minister Elisabeth Borne, rushed to the scene on the same day, while he was two days late for the mosque crime.
Retailleau found no justification other than saying that the crime that occurred in the high school was more dangerous, according to him. This prompted journalist Duhamel, who is also known for his far-right positions, to accuse the minister of practicing a double standard, saying: 'How would you have acted if the murder had occurred in a church or a synagogue?'
Retailleau's handling of the crime angered the victim's family's lawyer, who said that 'there is no doubt that this crime was a terrorist attack. It is clear that the national police must take over this case without delay,' and stressed that 'the victim must receive the same treatment as any other citizen.'
The provocations of the French Interior Minister did not stop at his disrespect for the Muslim community in France and treating them as second-class French citizens, but extended to his belittling of the solidarity stand that took place last Sunday, which was called for by the leader of the 'La France Insoumise' party, Jean-Luc Mélenchon. Retailleau accused the left-wing parties of exploiting the mosque crime incident, in which a French person associated with the far-right was involved, to achieve political gains, which did not convince his interviewer, who was also surprised by this position.
In the solidarity stand, Jean-Luc Mélenchon strongly criticized Bruno Retailleau for continuing to target Muslims even during the difficult times France is going through, in reference to the mosque crime incident. With great disgust, Mélenchon addressed Bruno Retailleau saying: 'And in this sensitive circumstance, the Interior Minister comes out and says down with the veil!' in reference to his war on the symbols of the Islamic religion.
While the French agree on using the term 'Islamophobia' against any position, behavior, hatred, or prejudice against Muslims, the French Interior Minister comes out to announce his rejection of using this term because it involves ideological considerations, according to him, and prefers to use the term 'anti-Muslim act,' which confirms that the man is obsessed with hostility towards Islam and Muslims.
The French Interior Minister, who is also the Minister of Religions, had previously refused to accept an invitation for Iftar extended to him by the Dean of the Paris Mosque, Chems-Eddine Hafiz, last Ramadan, while his counterpart in the government, Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot, accepted it. Retailleau justified his refusal by saying that Iftar is an 'unofficial' task, which was considered a flimsy excuse, because he had previously accepted invitations from Christian and Jewish religious figures, which are documented with photos.
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