A mosque in northern France has been closed due to the radical nature of the imam’s preaching.
According to a report by AFP, a mosque in Beauvais, a city with 50,000 residents, will be closed for six months, according to the Oise region prefecture.
French authorities claim there were sermons being held in the mosque that espoused hatred, violence, and “defend jihad.”
Earlier this month, Gerald Darmanin, the Interior Minister, said he triggered the procedure to close the mosque because its imam was “targeting Christians, homosexuals, and Jews” in his sermons, stating that it was “unacceptable.”
The report says that local authorities are legally required to gather information for 10 days prior to taking action, but the mosque will now be closed within two days.
A report from the local news outlet, Courrier Picard, said that the mosque’s Imam in recent months converted to Islam.
According to Courier Picard, a lawyer for the organization managing the mosque said that his remarks were taken “out of context,” adding that the imam was suspended from his duties.
France has announced earlier this year that it will increase checks on places of worship and groups suspected of spreading radical Islamic propaganda.
The crackdown followed the murder of teacher Samuel Paty in October 2020, after an online campaign targeted him for showing Charlie Hebdo’s cartoons of the Prophet Mohammed during a civics class.
Over the last several months, the interior ministry has revealed that about 100 mosques and Muslim prayer halls have been investigated due to suspicions of spreading “separatist” ideology.
There are six sites currently under investigation for possible closure under French laws against extremism and Islamist separatism, the newspaper said.
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