France: Man says Muslims tried to kill his dog, they claim he insulted Islam

There are two conflicting accounts of what happened here, and no way to tell which account is accurate. However, the man’s account of the women’s hysteria over the dog is entirely plausible, given the fact that Islam hates dogs:

“Once Gabriel promised the Prophet (that he would visit him, but Gabriel did not come) and later on he said, ‘We, angels, do not enter a house which contains a picture or a dog.’” — Sahih Bukhari 4.54.50

“Abdullah (b. Umar) (Allah be pleased with them) reported: Allah’s Messenger (may peace be upon him) ordered the killing of dogs and we would send (men) in Medina and its corners and we did not spare any dog that we did not kill, so much so that we killed the dog that accompanied the wet she-camel belonging to the people of the desert.” — Sahih Muslim 3811

“Ibn Mughaffal reported: The Messenger of Allah (may peace be upon him) ordered killing of the dogs, and then said: What about them, i. e. about other dogs? and then granted concession (to keep) the dog for hunting and the dog for (the security) of the herd, and said: When the dog licks the utensil, wash it seven times, and rub it with earth the eighth time.” — Sahih Muslim 551

🚨🇫🇷 ALERTE – Un homme à #Montpellier a insulté 2 femmes Maghrébines car l'une d'entre elle etait voilée puis s'est levé afin de les agresser en les etranglant.

Nous recherchons activement son identité, pour toute information envoyé nous un DM : pic.twitter.com/hQXS7BcMf8

— Tajmaât (@Tajmaat_Service) April 12, 2022

“Suspected of assault on two veiled women in Montpellier: ‘They wanted to kill my dog’ says the man in the video,” translated from “Soupçonné d’agression sur deux femmes voilées à Montpellier : ‘Elles voulaient tuer mon chien’ raconte l’homme de la vidéo,” Midi Libre, April 13, 2022 (thanks to Medforth):

A viral video has been circulating since Tuesday, April 12 on social networks. We see an altercation between a man and two young women, one of whom was veiled, in Montpellier. The man, whose testimony Midi Libre has collected, defends himself and claims to be the victim of “sick behavior.” Placed in police custody at the central police station after the complaint filed by the two women, the individual also decided to file a complaint.

What happened on Tuesday April 12 in Montpellier? A video of an altercation between a man and two women, one of whom was veiled, has gone viral on social networks. The short sequence, which has so far recorded hundreds of thousands of views, shows the scene which took place near the banks of the Lez. The prefect of Hérault, Hugues Moutouh, also condemned “firmly this attack which will give rise to the necessary legal consequences,” on Twitter.

According to the first testimonies collected the same day, the young women said they were victims of a gratuitous racist attack. The broadcast of the video which quickly translated into a “fatwa” online to identify and find the man.

A day later, Midi Libre was able to hear the version of Mr. K., who decided to file a complaint for infringement of image rights.

“They screamed like crazy”
According to him, it all started when he was walking his dog in the late morning on the banks of the Lez, near the Hôtel de Région. The animal, a dachshund, is unleashed when it approaches a bench on which five women are seated, two of whom are wearing a hijab, the Islamic veil.

Visibly frightened by the dog, the young women then begin to “scream like mad,” he explains. Heard by the police, the complainants also evoke a dog of “small size” not leashed: “My friends who were afraid of the dog stood up on the bench,” testifies one of them.

“They wanted to kill my dog”
This is when the versions differ. According to one of the victims who testified on the Decolonial News Twitter account, the man “laughed” when he saw this scene and quipped “What religion of idiots,” which he did not confirm during his hearing.

He claims to have received threats. “They immediately asked me, shouting, to tie up the dog and get him out of there because it was Ramadan,” otherwise they were going to “kill him,” he explains to us before repeating several times that they “wanted to kill the dog!”

“I told them that I still had the right to walk where I wanted with my dog”

Very quickly, the tone rises and the situation escalates, the young women accuse the man of having insulted them. He defends himself and mentions having been asked to “clear out” as well as having been insulted in Arabic and received homophobic insults. He then tries to flee the conflict and continue on his way when the latter follow him.

“They started taking out their phones to film me, which I also wanted to do in return,” he explains, referring to “sick behavior.” This is when the scene is filmed. “One then jumps on me to snatch my phone, I resist.” The latter then manages to grab a smartphone before throwing it on the ground. In the online sequence, we can indeed see a phone fly under the repeated cries of young women.

The absence of visual witnesses makes the investigation delicate, where here, the two accounts contradict each other on several points. The man went to the police station on Wednesday, April 13 to file a complaint for image infringement. He was taken into custody while he was interviewed. The prosecution must decide between extending his custody or releasing him during the day.