The Paris court has put on hold the civil dispute over a controversial agreement between PSG's Qatari boss Nasser Al-Khelaïfi and a Franco-Algerian, Tayeb Benabderrahmane, while the criminal justice system decides, a source close to the case said on Friday.

In an order issued on February 3 and which AFP was able to consult, the civil judge "suspends ruling (...) pending a final decision" concerning ongoing criminal proceedings in Paris.

This suspension, proposed by the judge, was defended by the boss of PSG, and refused by Mr. Benabderrahmane.

Tayeb Benabderrahmane, described as a lobbyist, spent six months in prison in Qatar, starting in January 2020. In November 2020, he was able to leave the emirate after agreeing not to disclose potentially compromising documents about Nasser Al-Khelaïfi, nicknamed "NAK", under penalty of having to pay him 5 million euros.

It was this agreement that Mr. Benabderrahmane intended to have overturned in civil court, arguing that it had been obtained under duress, claiming he was being held "hostage" in Qatar. To do so, he will therefore have to wait for the criminal courts to rule in the three ongoing cases.

The first is the investigation opened for kidnapping, sequestration, torture and threats, following a complaint by Mr. Benabderrahmane; the second is the investigation surrounding the case described by the press as "dirty tricks" around PSG, in which Mr. Benabderrahmane is charged, notably for influence peddling and corruption.

The third procedure concerns a complaint with civil action filed by Nasser Al-Khelaïfi, notably for attempted blackmail, attempted fraud in court proceedings and slanderous denunciation.

The evidence gathered by the criminal justice system "is likely to directly and significantly influence (...) the outcome of the civil dispute," the order emphasizes.

"The court has upheld Nasser Al-Khelaïfi's status as a civil party and rejected the false and slanderous accusations of Tayeb Benabderrahmane. We have full confidence in our judicial system and are convinced that the truth will ultimately prevail," reacted Renaud Semerdjian, the lawyer for the PSG boss, to AFP.

"This decision is very worrying," declared Mr. Benabderrahmane's lawyers, Luke Vidal and Romain Ruiz. They believe that "Nasser Al-Khelaifi and Qatar, which he represents in France, are trying to evade responsibility for the kidnapping, confinement, and multiple attempts on the lives of Mr. Benabderrahmane and his family."