by Nice’s Algerian international Youcef Atal He was sentenced this Wednesday to 8 months in prison exempt from compliance and a fine of 45,000 euros for having shared a video, at the height of the conflict between Israel and Hamas, in which a Palestinian preacher called for “a black day for the Jews.”
Furthermore, the 27-year-old player who is concentrated with his team to compete in the Africa Cup of Nations (CAN), will have to publish the sentence in two newspapers.
This is a sentence somewhat lower than that requested by the Prosecutor’s Office, which filed a complaint for provocation of racist hatred for religious reasons against the footballer. and asked for 10 months in prison exempt from compliance.
Five days after the Hamas attacks against Israel on October 7, Atal shared on his Instagram account, followed by 3.2 million subscribers, the video of a Palestinian preacher in which he showed his sorrow for the children who were being massacred in Gaza.
Besides, asks God for “a black day for the Jews” and called to “accompany the hand” of those who “throw the stone” in that Palestinian region.
Although the next day, warned by his club, I removed the message and posted another one apologizing.The court handed down a guilty verdict.
During the trial, Atal again apologized and claimed that he had not watched the entire video before posting it. argument that has not convinced the prosecution since it only lasted 35 seconds.
“I am not anti-Semitic. I do not feel hatred for anyone,” the defender said at the hearing.
The Algerian footballer has remained away from the Nice discipline since those events, firstly at the initiative of the club itself. Later due to a seven-match sanction imposed by the sporting authorities and now by the CAN.
