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Algerian footballer Youcef Atal received an eight-month suspended prison sentence along with a USD 49,000 penalty. Atal has been handed the penalty by a court in Nice for posting a social media post regarding the Israel-Hamas conflict. As per the court, the social media post incited hatred on the grounds of religion. The 27-year-old, who has been with the French team Nice since 2008, was suspended by the Ligue 1 club in October 2023, after he post he made on social media.
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The young defender is suspended by his club Nice, ‘until further notice’. Atal has been selected in the Algeria squad for the Africa Cup of Nations. Apart from the penalty, the young footballer will also pay for the details of his conviction to be published in the regional daily Nice-Matin and the national newspaper Le Monde. Not only this but he is also prohibited from leaving the national territory, except his activities as a professional footballer.
Atal deleted the post a day after uploading it and apologised for the same. Not only this, but he also issued an apology during the court’s hearing and said that he did not watch the full 35-second video and wanted to send "a message of peace". However, his argument wasn’t strong enough to convince the prosecutors.
According to the French newspaper Nice-Matin, a day after the Hamas attack on October 7, 2023, Atal published a 35-second video on his social media, which was originally posted by a Palestinian preacher who called on God to send "a black day over the Jews”. After deleting the post, the Algeria international said, “I am aware that my post shocked many people, which wasn't my intention, and I apologise.”
