Paris: French far-right politician Eric Zemmour's convictions for hate speech and defamation became final after the Court of Cassation rejected his latest appeals.
According to Anadolu Agency, the country's top court upheld rulings that found Zemmour guilty over remarks targeting unaccompanied migrant minors and comments made against a lawyer in a separate case. The court confirmed that Zemmour, the founder and current president of the Reconquete party, was convicted for complicity in public insult and incitement to hatred over statements on the CNews channel in 2020, describing unaccompanied migrant minors as 'thieves,' 'murderers,' and 'rapists.' He was ordered to pay a fine of £10,000 ($11,637), as reported by Le Parisien.
The court stated that Zemmour's comments 'exceeded the permissible limits of freedom of expression due to their violence and generality,' emphasizing that these remarks could not be justified even amid debates on France's immigration policy. Under French press law, Jean-Christophe Thiery de Bercegol du Moulin, the editor-in-chief of CNews at the time, was convicted of the main offenses and fined £3,000.
CNews itself previously received a £200,000 fine imposed by the former audiovisual regulator CSA, now Arcom, a penalty later upheld by the Conseil d'Etat. The European Court of Human Rights dismissed a challenge from the broadcaster in January 2025.
In a separate incident in April 2022, Zemmour told France 2 that the father of Jeremie Cohen, a young Jewish man who died after being struck by a tram following an assault, had claimed 'his lawyer Patrick Klugman wanted absolutely to cover up the case.' However, prosecutors found no evidence supporting any 'religious motive' in Cohen's death. Courts convicted Zemmour of defamation both in the first instance and on appeal, issuing a £10,000 fine, which is now finalized.
Zemmour, known for his hardline anti-immigration rhetoric and repeated clashes with media regulators and courts, faces a growing list of judicial setbacks as he seeks to remain a prominent voice in the lead-up to France's 2027 presidential race.