A rap song referencing jihadists involved in deadly attacks in France has appeared in videos filmed during student protests at a French high school and at a church. The track, "MRH" by rapper BORO700, references Mohamed Merah, who killed a teacher and three children at a Jewish school in Toulouse in 2012, and Salah Abdeslam, who was convicted for his role in the November 2015 Paris attacks. The lyrics also refer to the Bataclan concert hall, where 90 people were killed.
One video circulating on social media shows students singing the track at François-Villon high school in Beaugency, in the Loiret region, during a school blockade on October 1. They could be heard shouting French lyrics, translated into English as: "Like Mohamed Merah, dodging the cameras," and "Bataclan, I shot him with my eyes, manhunt, Salah Abdeslam." The Orléans prosecutor’s office opened a preliminary investigation into suspected "apology for terrorism," and three minors were placed in police custody on October 7, according to French media reports citing the prosecutor. The term “apology for terrorism” refers to publicly presenting or justifying terrorism, or portraying terrorist acts or their perpetrators in a favorable manner, in a way that may constitute a criminal offense.
The investigation concerns the song’s lyrics and does not establish the students’ intentions. The song also appears in a video filmed on October 4 inside Saint-Hilaire church in Soullans, Western France, in an incident separate from the school protests. The municipality said the young people involved were minors.
It urged residents not to share the footage, warning that its spread could expose them and inflame tensions. "There is every reason to believe that the young people concerned did not fully appreciate the impact of their actions or the meaning of some of the words that were broadcast," Soullans' Mayor Vincent Jolly wrote on Facebook. The post called for an "educational, thoughtful and proportionate" response and cautioned against conflating the local incident with terrorism or wider national tensions.
The prosecutor’s office in La Roche-sur-Yon said investigations were underway. Rapper BORO700 is also due to appear in a Paris court on October 21 on charges including apology for terrorism, apology for a crime against humanity and conditional death threats, Le Parisien reported, citing the Paris prosecutor’s office. The case concerns the rapper and is separate from the investigations into the videos featuring young people.
The song's references are central to the public reaction. Between March 11 and 19, 2012, Mohamed Merah, a French citizen of Algerian origin, carried out a series of jihadi attacks in Toulouse and Montauban. He killed seven people, including two soldiers, a rabbi and three Jewish children aged 3, 5 and 8.
Extract — continue reading at the source.
