The Russian-born billionaire and founder of the popular messaging app was arrested upon landing in the French capital on Saturday evening.
The prosecutor’s statement mentioned 12 different offenses under investigation for “complicity” in organized crime, including illicit transactions, child pornography, fraud, and the refusal to disclose information to authorities.
The statement added that Durov’s time in custody had been extended and could now last until Wednesday.
Russia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesperson, Maria Zakharova, criticized French authorities for their double standards following Durov’s arrest. “I just remembered that in 2018, a group of 26 NGOs, including Human Rights Watch, Amnesty International, Freedom House, Reporters Without Borders, the Committee to Protect Journalists, and others, condemned a Russian court’s decision to block Telegram. The West made other similar statements,” Zakharova stated.
Telegram has played an important role in the ongoing information war surrounding the genocide in Gaza. Supporters of Palestinians have been able to use the app to freely share information exposing ongoing Israeli war crimes while highlighting the efforts of Hamas, Hezbollah, Yemen, and Iran to resist Israel.
It is unclear if Israel had a role in Durov’s detention in Paris on Saturday.
Last week, Haaretz reported that “Telegram has proved a massive challenge for Israel since the start of the war.”
This includes sensitive data leaks from Israel acquired by hackers and released on Telegram channels.
The Israeli newspaper noted, “While many tech firms have streamlined mechanisms through which states can reach out to them” to censor content, “Telegram is considered the least cooperative of them all.”
Haaretz adds, “More than that, while many social media platforms have invested heavily in moderation, allowing people and organizations to help monitor content – for example, the removal of antisemitic content or posts inciting terrorism or even the removal of videos from the October 7 massacre – Telegram has not.”
Pavel Durov posted on Instagram
Israel has been successful in controlling and censoring information on other social media apps, including Instagram, Facebook, X, and TikTok, via the lobbying of Cyberwell, an NGO with extensive links to Israeli intelligence.
On 23 August, Resistance News Network’s (RNN) Telegram channel was banned across the EU, prompting them to activate their backup.
On 16 August, Facebook and Instagram parent company Meta permanently banned The Cradle from its social media platforms for allegedly violating community guidelines by “praising terrorist organizations” and engaging in “incitement to violence.” The Cradle had surpassed 107,000 followers and amassed millions of views due to its coverage of Israel’s genocide of Palestinians in Gaza.
Concerned by the wave of pro-Palestinian content, Israelis in the tech industry tried late in 2023 to reach the Telegram founder in the UAE, where he resides and has citizenship.
Though they successfully contacted Durov, “he was unreceptive to these private requests to improve moderation on the platform,” Haaretz wrote.
Durov’s arrest follows recent efforts in western countries to silence journalists and analysts critical of Israel.
On 7 August, the FBI raided the home of US journalist and former UN weapons inspector Scott Ritter, who contributes to RT and is harshly critical of US policy in Ukraine and Israel.
The raid on Ritter’s home came 24 hours after he stated in an interview with Judge Andrew Napolitano that religious Jewish Israelis were citing the Talmud to justify sexually assaulting and torturing Palestinian detainees at the notorious Sde Teiman detention camp.
Syrian-British journalist Richard Medhurst was arrested and held for 24 hours upon his arrival at Heathrow Airport earlier this month, he announced on 20 August.
Medhurst stated via social media that six police officers were waiting for him as he exited his plane in London on 15 August, adding that he was questioned under the Terrorism Act, Section 12.