French Far Right Proposes To Prevent The Gathering Of Algerians During Football Matches

Videos that were published on social media show French cops who were taking off the flags of Algerian team’s fans on Monday in the streets of the Champs-Elysées in Paris, and arresting them and taking them to security centers, at the time when the far-right party has proposed closing the squares and banning the gathering of Algerians during their national football team’s games.

In the videos that have been very popular on Facebook and Twitter, especially in Algeria, show Algerian cops who have removed prevented Algerian fans from waving their national flags in the Champs-Elysées.

It is remarkable in these videos is that the police operation took place during the day and the sun is still bright and the match against Nigeria took place at 21:00 France time.

A person commented on the video, wondering; “Look at everyone who carries the flag of Algeria in the Champs-Elyseés is being arrested”, another person commented; “This is racism!”

Another Algerian appeared to wear the national flag around him and he was lying on the ground and the cops were chasing him while people were shouting “One Two Three Viva l’Algérié”.

France’s formerly called “National Front” leader, Marin Le Pen, published a tweet: “282 arrests due to the chaos that was caused by Algerian fans, it is a worrying figure due to a foreign football team’s match.”

A leader of the French National Rally Party, Julien Odoul, showed racist statements against Algeria and the Algerians, which he began on the eve of the match when he wished Nigeria would crush the Algerian national team, which is according to him the only way to prevent the waving of Algerian flags in the French squares and streets.

Julien Odoul also posted a video in which he said it is an Algeria supporter and another African-American, who said “I’ve done it faster than the Germans when we have occupied Paris in less than 3 hours”, and tried to give the impression that this is the behavior of all Algerian fans, while this fan’s behavior is individual, but he was with another African as well”.

But in the video, the person shows up and says that he is a Tunisian and that things are quiet and there is no cracking and we are here only to celebrate and conclude his speech by saying; “We did it faster than the Germans, we occupied Paris in less than 3 hours.”

Christian Chino, leader of the Marin-Le Pen party, proposed closing the main squares and streets of France at each match for the Algerian national team, and preventing the assembly, especially since what happened on 14 July is the French National Day.

According to the French newspaper Le Figaro, 282 people were arrested following the celebrations of the Algerian team’s fans after the victory over Nigeria team and qualification to the AFCON finals, through several cities including Paris, Lyon, and Marseille.