Hang on! Did the CIA Have Telegram’s Founder Arrested? | Redacted w Natali and Clayton Morris
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Telegram Founder & CEO Pavel Durov Arrested in France as Online Censorship Escalates
Glenn Greenwald
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Sunday, 25 August 2024 8:34 AM[Last Update:Sunday, 25 August 2024 8:34 AM]
Telegram founder and CEO Pavel Durov speaks at a conference in Barcelona, Spain, on February 23, 2016. (Photo by AP)
The arrest of Telegram chief executive Pavel Durov in France has set off reactions among politicians and social media activists across the world, with calls growing for the release of the 39-year-old Franco-Russian billionaire.
Durov was detained at Le Bourget Airport near the French capital of Paris on Saturday evening and is reported to appear in court for alleged offenses related to his popular messaging application.
Local broadcaster LCI said the French authorities had issued an arrest warrant for the Russian-born tech entrepreneur as part of a preliminary investigation into alleged offenses, including fraud, drug trafficking, cyber-bullying, organized crime, and promotion of terrorism.
Durov, who obtained a French passport in 2021, is also a citizen of the UAE and a native Russian.
‘Politically motivated’ arrest
Reacting to Durov’s arrest, Deputy Speaker of the Russian State Duma Vladislav Davankov said Moscow must demand the immediate release of the Telegram founder.
Writing on Telegram in the early hours of Sunday, Davankov defended Durov’s record and said, “Hardly anyone else has done more for the development of digital services in Russia and the world.”
“We need to get him out of there. I have urged Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov to appeal to the French authorities to release Pavel Durov from custody,” the politician added.
“His arrest could be politically motivated and used to gain access to the personal information of Telegram users. We cannot allow this.”
Should Paris refuse to release Durov, “everything must be done to transport him to the UAE or Russia – if he agrees, of course,” Davankov said.
The politician dismissed the allegations against the Telegram chief executive, saying illicit activity can be found on all messaging platforms “but nobody arrests or jails their owners.”
Russian Embassy responds
Russia’s Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said the Russian Embassy in Paris was working on a response to the situation with Durov.
Zakharova said that Durov’s detention raises a question of whether international organizations will demand his release or will “swallow their tongues.”
Zakharova pointed out that in 2018, a group of 26 NGOs, including Human Rights Watch, Amnesty International, Freedom House, Reporters Without Borders, and others, condemned the Russian court’s ruling to block Telegram.
“Do you think they will call on Paris this time and demand Durov’s release or will they swallow their tongues?” the diplomat said on her Telegram channel.
“There were legislative complaints to Telegram [in 2018], which many countries had due to the technical parameters of its encryption system,” she said, stressing that Durov remained free and continued to develop his messenger during that period.
The diplomat emphasized that the Russian Embassy has “immediately” started working on his detention “as it is supposed to in a case when information comes that the receiving side has detained a Russian citizen.”
‘A living warning’
American journalist and political commentator Tucker Carlson said the arrest of Durov in France is a warning to platforms that stand up to censorship.
Carlson also censured the West for its so-called advocacy of freedom of speech.
“Pavel Durov left Russia when the government tried to control his social media company, Telegram,” Carlson asserted. “But in the end, it wasn’t Putin who arrested him for allowing the public to exercise free speech. It was a Western country, a Biden administration ally and enthusiastic NATO member that locked him away.”
Durov’s arrest is “a living warning to any platform owner who refuses to censor the truth at the behest of governments and intel agencies,” he added.
“Darkness is descending fast on the formerly free world,” he warned.
Carlson recorded a rare interview with Durov in April, in which the Telegram owner spoke about his disagreements with the Russian government, as well as the pressure he faced in the US.
Durov said that the administration of US President Joe Biden had asked him to set up surveillance “backdoor” on the messenger, which he had refused.
American billionaire and X owner Elon Musk also condemned Durov’s arrest, saying, “It’s 2030 in Europe and you’re being executed for liking a meme.”
‘Who will be next?’
According to The Cradle, within the past two weeks, the online news magazine was banned by Meta (Facebook, Instagram), the Resistance News Network (RNN)’s Telegram channel was banned in the EU, and Durov was arrested.
Also, it added, Scott Ritter’s home was raided by the FBI over “unregistered foreign agent” allegations, and journalist Richard Medhurst was arrested at Heathrow Airport under the UK Terrorism Act
“Who/what will be next?” it said.
With more than 900 million active users, Telegram allows groups of up to 200,000 members, which has led to accusations that it makes it easier for false information to spread virally, as well as for users to disseminate neo-Nazi, paedophilic, conspiratorial, and terrorist content.
French broadcaster TF1 reported that Durov is going to appear before a judge on Sunday and could be facing up to 20 years in prison.
Press TV’s website can also be accessed at the following alternate addresses:
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by Agence France-Presse – AFP
ParisAug 27, 2024 – 3:31 pm GMT+3
Forming a new government in France was in limbo Tuesday when President Emmanuel Macron faced an uphill battle to launch fresh talks.
The political stalemate was caused by the political left’s refusal to take part in negotiations after Macron rejected their candidate for prime minister.
More than seven weeks after aninconclusive parliamentary electionwhich cost his allies their relative majority, Macron has still not named a new prime minister to take over from the current caretaker administration.
Left-wing coalition the New Popular Front (NFP) emerged from the vote as the largest bloc, but well short of an absolute majority.
In the 577-seat National Assembly, the NFP has over 190 seats, followed by Macron’s centrist alliance at around 160 and Marine Le Pen’s far-right National Rally at 140.
The NFP has nevertheless demanded that the president pick their candidate Lucie Castets, a 37-year-old economist with a history of left-wing activism.
But late Monday, Macron ruled out naming a left-wing government, saying it would be a “threat to institutional stability.”
Instead, he called on “all political leaders to rise to the occasion by demonstrating a spirit of responsibility.”
Macron’s office said that it would be pointless to name an NFP government as it would immediately be rejected by a no-confidence vote in parliament.
The president called on the socialists, ecologists and communists in the leftist alliance to “cooperate with other political forces,” in an apparent attempt to lure the more moderate members of the coalition away from LFI.
But Tuesday, Socialist party boss Oliver Faure refused Macron’s overture, saying he would “not be an accomplice to a parody of democracy.”
Socialist deputies would back a no-confidence motion against any government that was not put forward by the NFP, he said, accusing the president of seeking to “prolong Macronism” despite losing the National Assembly election.
‘Annoyed, to say the least’
“French people will start to get annoyed, to say the least,” Faure warned, saying he himself would take part in street protests, after Communist party leader Fabien Roussel – who also rejected new talks with Macron – called for a “grand popular mobilization.”
“The left is being robbed of this election,” said Green Party chief Marine Tondelier.
“We won’t be part of this mess anymore,” she said.
Castets accused Macron of seeking to be “president, prime minister and party leader all at the same time,” adding that this was “not respectful of French voters or of democracy.”
LFI founder Jean-Luc Melenchon even threatened to start impeachment proceedings against Macron.
The far-right National Rally (RN) has not been invited to Tuesday’s talks.
Meanwhile. Francois Bayrou, a highly respected veteran centrist, chided the president for getting bogged down in negotiations with political parties which he said was “the wrong method.”
Instead, he said, Macron should seek out a candidate with experience of high office.
“There are people who have held the office of president,” he said, “others who had high government positions” or “who have represented political movements and currents.”
Macron’s office has not given any indication about the president’s timetable for naming a prime minister – but the clock is running to Oct. 1, the legal deadline by which a government must present a draft budget law for 2025.
Macron is also scheduled toopen the Paris Paralympic Gameson Wednesday, and is expected in Serbia on Thursday for an official visit.
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Last Update: Aug 27, 2024 5:13 pm
KEYWORDS – france politicsfranceparispolitical turmoilemanuel macron
