Yassine Belattar responds to his detractors

In an interview on Tuesday on BFMTV, Yassine Belattar affirmed his legitimacy to be part of this delegation in his capacity as a "French and Moroccan artist". "I’ve been doing this job for 20 years," the comedian recalled, before adding: "There are 122 people in the delegation, it’s a great day for the relationship between France and Morocco." Belattar also said he was "proud to return to Morocco, with a plane with ’French Republic’ written on it and to succeed in reconciling the history of the two countries that forged me." "This page is magnificent to write," he added.

Yassine Belattar also denounced the remarks reported by CNews according to which Sébastien Lecornu, Minister of the Armed Forces, had "taken him for a technician" during this trip. "I know Sébastien Lecornu since I have crossed paths with him several times. I find it deplorable that someone around him says that I was a technician," said the comedian, condemning these "racist remarks".

The presence of the comedian in the delegation of the French president who is making a three-day state visit to Morocco has provoked a strong reaction from personalities of the far right. "How can this so-called comedian, convicted of death threats, close to the anti-Semites of the CCIF (Collective against Islamophobia in France), be present on a trip of this importance in the company of the President of the Republic? It is as disrespectful to France as it is to Morocco," wrote Jordan Bardella, the president of the Rassemblement national, on X.

For Marion Maréchal, Belattar’s presence, "all the more so in a tracksuit", was "a shame for the French delegation visiting the friendly country that is Morocco." In addition to the comedian, the delegation is composed of ten ministers, including the Minister of the Interior, Bruno Retailleau, and the Minister of the Armed Forces, Sébastien Lecornu, as well as deputies and businessmen, as well as friends of the French president, Jean-Marc Borello, founder of the SOS association group, and Christian Dargnat, a former banker.