The Great Mosque of Paris files a complaint against author Houellebecq

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The Great Mosque of Paris announced Wednesday, December 28, on Twitter a complaint against the French writer Michel Houellebecq after "extremely serious remarks he made towards the Muslims of France."

The institution relates to a "long conversation" between M. Houellebecq and Michel Onfray, which was published in a special edition of the journal Popular Front in November.

𝐂𝐎𝐌𝐌𝐔𝐍𝐈𝐐𝐔𝐄 | La Grande Mosquée de Paris porte plainte contre Michel Houellebecq pour les propos très graves qu’il a tenu au sujet des musulmans de France dans une récente interview écrite : pic.twitter.com/JS4NwLM2R8

— Grande Mosquée de Paris (@mosqueedeparis) December 28, 2022

In a press release, the rector of the Chems-Eddins Hafiz great mosque condemned Michel Houellebecq's views as "wrong and very harsh" and cited specific excerpts such as, "When entire territories are under Islamic authority, I think that acts of resistance will take place.”

"There will be attacks and shootings at mosques and cafés favored by Muslims, in short, a Bataclan in reverse," the writer further said during an interview.

"The objective of the local French population, as they say, is not for Muslims to assimilate, but for them to stop robbing and attacking them," Michel Houellbecq added. "Or, another possibility, that they go away".

In response to "lapidary" statements implying that "Muslims are not true Frenchmen," rector Chems-Eddine Hafiz declared that he has filed a complaint "with the Public Prosecutor's Office in Paris" for inciting hatred toward Muslims.

Michel Houellebecq's book "Submission", in which he imagines a France dominated by the leader of a Muslim party, created controversy in France in 2015. 

It is worth noting that France has recently witnessed a wave of Islamophobic activity, recording a 38% increase in anti-Muslim attacks in 2021.

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