French prosecutors have dropped a potential hate crime case against a French teen named Mila who received death threats after she criticised Islam online.
The Vienne public prosecutor dropped the investigation for “hate provocation” against the 16-year-old, stating that the investigation into the motive and context of her words “revealed no element likely to characterize this as a criminal offence”, France Info reports.
The investigation began after Mila had made a post on social media platform Instagram earlier this month in which she made several remarks critical of Islam and saw a massive backlash from Muslims in France, including several death threats.
During an argument with another user, she said, “I hate religion. The Koran is . . . full of hate. There is only hate in it. Islam is a shit religion. That’s what I think.”
Muslims in Europe Becoming Less Secular, More Radical as 80 Percent Now Identify as Religious https://t.co/GYoE2o73pP
— Breitbart London (@BreitbartLondon) December 20, 2018
According to The Times, the teen saw 200 hateful messages per minute and was forced to leave school and be placed under police protection for her own safety.
The issue has caused controversy across the political spectrum in France, with left-wing feminists defending Mila, who is a lesbian, and populist National Rally leader Marine Le Pen also coming out in support of the teen.
“We might find [the girl’s comments] vulgar, but we can’t accept the fact that some people sentence her to death for that in France in the 21st century,” Le Pen said.
The prosecutor’s office has also stated they are investigating the various death threats and other posts made against Mila.
The affair is just the latest clash between Islam and France’s secular society in recent years.
From disputes over the sharia-compliant swimwear known as the burkini to Muslim mass street prayers, France is becoming increasingly divided.
A poll released in October revealed that 61 per cent of the French public thought that Islam was simply not compatible with French society, while another study from 2018 claimed that Muslims were becoming less and less secular.
France: As Many Muslims as Practising Catholics in 18-29 Year-Old Demographic https://t.co/KdUU5QUgV4
— Breitbart London (@BreitbartLondon) May 26, 2019
COMMENTS
Please let us know if you're having issues with commenting.