After her detention ended Thursday evening, Rima Hassan, a member of the European Parliament for La France Insoumise, was issued a summons to appear in court on charges of "online glorification of terrorism" in connection with an investigation into a tweet. A small quantity of what appears to be a synthetic drug was also found in her bag, the prosecutor's office stated.

MEP Rima Hassan was released from police custody on Thursday evening, April 2, and "was given a summons to appear before the criminal court on July 7 to be tried on charges of online glorification of terrorism," the Paris prosecutor's office announced.

On Tuesday morning, the French-Palestinian MEP from La France Insoumise (LFI) appeared at the judicial police station after being summoned and taken into custody. "This placement in custody is possible, without the need to lift parliamentary immunity, within the framework of the preliminary investigation," the prosecutor's office stated.

The justice system is accusing the 33-year-old MEP of a post on her X account on March 26, 2026, which referenced Kōzō Okamoto. He is the sole survivor of the three perpetrators of the massacre carried out on May 30, 1972, in the name of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) at Israel's Lod-Tel Aviv airport, which left 26 dead, including one Canadian, eight Israelis, and 17 American citizens from Puerto Rico.

Accompanied by Japanese and Palestinian flags, Rima Hassan's tweet quoted him as saying: "Kozo Okamoto: I dedicated my youth to the Palestinian cause. As long as there is oppression, resistance will not only be a right, but a duty." She also reposted a text in English about Kōzō Okamoto, "recalling that he had taken part in this attack and a photo in which he was being carried on the shoulders of men dressed in fatigues and keffiyehs," the prosecutor's office stated.

The publication had been reported to the public prosecutor's office by the Minister of the Interior, then by the European Jewish Organization (EJO) and the Licra.

CBD and 3MMC

"No comment today, we will hold a press conference tomorrow," Rima Hassan told reporters Thursday evening after being released from custody, during which "people were very polite and professional."

The MEP then wrote on X that "based on illegal leaks, I have had to endure accusations of possessing several drugs. These accusations are totally false," she thundered, specifying that only the presence of CBD had been found, "which is perfectly legal."

A source close to the case indicated that a small quantity of synthetic drugs had been found in the MEP's bag. "A search of Rima Hassan's belongings revealed the presence of substances resembling CBD and 3MMC (a synthetic drug), about which she was questioned," the prosecutor's office stated after her detention. "These items are separate and will be the subject of a distinct procedure."

"Political policing", "judicial harassment"

The detention of Rima Hassan has sparked outrage within the ranks of La France Insoumise. Jean-Luc Mélenchon denounced it as "political policing," while Manon Aubry, another MEP from the movement, condemned it as "judicial harassment."

Rima Hassan is implicated in six other cases, which the prosecutor's office declined to comment on as they are "still ongoing." Thirteen other cases conducted by the national unit for combating online hate speech were dismissed "after investigating the contexts in which the disputed remarks were made, interviewing the individual concerned or combining her explanations provided in other related cases, and analyzing all of this evidence." Most of these cases involved tweets or other comments reported by the OJE (Observatory of Judicial Equality), other organizations, or members of parliament.

A leading figure in the Palestinian cause, Rima Hassan makes no secret of her radical views on the State of Israel, which she describes as "terrorist," and frequently posts controversial messages. She was brought to the forefront by La France Insoumise (LFI) during the 2024 European elections, where sending her to Brussels became one of the party's main campaign arguments.

She also made headlines by twice boarding boats bound for the Gaza Strip to protest a humanitarian blockade. She was temporarily detained by Israeli forces after the vessel was intercepted.