Mila Trial: 11 convicted for cyberbullying French teen over anti-Islam videos

French court, on Wednesday, handed down suspended prison sentences to 11 people who were found guilty of harassing a teen girl over her anti-Islam videos published on social media. The prosecutions came after Mila was forced to change schools and accept police protection pertaining to the threats. According to Mila’s lawyer, Mila, who recently turned 18, receive over 100,000 threats encompassing death and rape threats, misogynists messages, and hate comments for her homosexuality, which she revealed on her social media. 

Mila’s videos were first published in 2020 and featured. Since then, the schoolgirl has triggered a debate on the extent to condemn religion. While supporters have called for an increased right to expression and blasphemy, critics have called out Islamophobia and deliberate provocation. It is imperative to note while Mila started by declaring that 'the Koran is a religion of hatred,' she told the jury during her trial that it was not only Islam but she hates every religion. 

11 convicted

The court in Paris tried 13 people from several French regions aged 18 to 30, who were all charged with harassing Mila, with some of them sending death threats including asserting that she could have a throat cut. In its judgment on Wednesday, one of the defendants was acquitted for lack of proof, while another was released due to a procedural problem. The remaining 11 were handed suspended sentences, meaning they will not serve time in jail unless they are convicted for other offenses.

France, which has been subjected to increased terror attacks in the past year, has attracted flak for its islamophobic sentiments. Last October, President Emmanuel Macron had spoken about a fight on ‘Islamist separatism’  Later, he made more controversial statements on the killing of teacher Samuel Patty by a Muslim student over the Charlie Hebdo cartoons on Prophet Mohammed. Praising Patty as “the face of the Republic who believed in knowledge’, that he was "killed because Islamists want our future" and that "France will not give up cartoons" have attracted widespread criticism.

Image: AP