France: Statement and Solidarity Actions for the Upcoming Trial of Alex
We hereby share an unofficial translation of a statement received per email, as well as solidarity actions carried out in his support.
Free Alex! Trial on September 14 in Lyon – Harassed by the French Government for His Support of Palestine!
For over a year and a half now, Alex, a pro-Palestinian and anti-imperialist militant from Lyon, has been literally harassed by the French government. In March 2025, he was arrested by a counterterrorism police unit on the tarmac of a Paris airport upon his return from Morocco, while his apartment was raided; following his 48 hours in police custody and his appearance before a judge, he was placed under strict judicial supervision. He was even administratively suspended from his job prior to his trial, which is fundamentally undemocratic. He is accused of making statements in support of the Palestinian people and Georges Abdallah.
He was tried in January 2026 and sentenced to a 10-month suspended prison term, a €2,000 fine, a 5-year ban on carrying weapons, a 5-year ban on holding public office, and registration in the FIJAIT (registry of terrorist offenders).
In March 2026, his home was raided again by the counterterrorism police, and he was held in custody for 48 hours before being brought before a judge once more—this time for remarks he made in Beirut, Lebanon, in support of the Palestinian people. Placed under judicial supervision once again, he is barred from protesting or leaving France and must report to the police station once a week.
His trial will take place on September 14 in Lyon, and the appeal hearing will be held on October 26 in Paris for his first case.
Alex, like many other pro-Palestinian activists or ordinary citizens horrified by the genocide of the Palestinian people, is being treated like a terrorist simply for speaking his mind. He is registered with FIJAIT and has had his home violently raided twice. He was suspended from his job as a precautionary measure—even before any judicial ruling—and has had several electronic devices confiscated. To top it all off, his bank account has been closed, and he is no longer allowed to protest. We are witnessing a true denial of democratic freedoms, even though his only “crime” is opposing the genocide of the Palestinians.
Like many pro-Palestinian activists, such as Timothée Esprit, Jean-Paul Delescaut, Téba Nezar, Yamin, Shahin Hazamy, Yanis Arab, François Burgat, Yasmine, Said, Yanis Arabe, Ismael Boudjekada, Olivia Zemor, Rima Hassan, Elyas d’Izmalène, Omar Alsoumi, Anase Kazib, and hundreds of others, Alex is not being punished for an action, but for his words—for his speech, let us remember. It is not the act that is being criminalized, but the speech—the democratic right to protest and fight against genocide and its perpetrators.
This simple fact should serve as a wake-up call: No, those who oppose genocide, colonization, and imperialism are not terrorists. No, those who stand on the side of the great history of the struggle of the working class and oppressed peoples are not terrorists. No, defenders of the people’s democratic rights—their most basic rights—are not terrorists.
After nearly three years of genocide, the deaths of probably more than 100,000 Palestinians and thousands of deaths in Lebanon, and the aggression against Iran, there should no longer be any pro-Palestinian activists facing trial in French courts; on the contrary, it should be the apologists for genocide who are held accountable for their actions.
Let us reject the normalization of repression against pro-Palestinian activists and offer our support to all those who stand on the right side of history by defending a people subjected to genocide.
We call on all forces—pro-Palestinian, anti-imperialist, and revolutionary political organizations, unions, associations, intellectuals, members of the National Assembly, senators, and elected officials—to unite in defense of Alex and to step up initiatives in support of all those facing repression. At stake is not only our ability to support the just struggle of the Palestinian people, but also our ability to defend our hard-won democratic rights, which form an important foundation of our society.
Acquit Alex and all those repressed for Palestine!
Let us unite to defend our democratic freedoms!
Palestine Will Live, and Palestine Will Triumph!
We also include posts from the X account of the Communist Youth (JC), documenting a football tournament where a banner calling for the freedom of Alex was hung. The banner reads “Support for Alex and all the repressed of the JC!”
