Overview
Luqman Haider is a radical preacher and terrorism supporter. On November 26, 2020, Haider was sentenced to 18 months imprisonment and banned from French territory.Victor Tassel, “Villiers-le-Bel : l’ex-imam condamné à 18 mois de prison pour apologie du terrorisme,” Le Parisien, November 26, 2020, https://www.leparisien.fr/val-d-oise-95/villiers-le-bel-l-ex-imam-condamne-a-18-mois-de-prison-pour-apologie-du-terrorisme-26-11-2020-8410704.php; Dr. Hugo Micheron, “Praising Jihadist Attacks on TikTok and the Challenge of Protecting Youths From Online Extremism,” Global Network on Extremism and Technology, December 9, 2020, https://gnet-research.org/2020/12/09/praising-jihadist-attacks-on-tiktok-and-the-challenge-of-protecting-youths-from-online-extremism/.
Originally from Pakistan, Haider allegedly learned the Quran “by heart” in 2004. However, Haider has claimed that he does not “know what’s in [the Quran]…I just know how to read it.” Haider illegally arrived in the Paris area in 2015, seeking asylum and fleeing the poverty he faced in Pakistan.Dr. Hugo Micheron, “Praising Jihadist Attacks on TikTok and the Challenge of Protecting Youths From Online Extremism,” Global Network on Extremism and Technology, December 9, 2020, https://gnet-research.org/2020/12/09/praising-jihadist-attacks-on-tiktok-and-the-challenge-of-protecting-youths-from-online-extremism/. After settling in the Villiers-le-Bel area, Haider taught Quranic lessons to kids and young teenagers in the neighborhood of Derrière-les-Murs de Monseigneur, an enclave for the Pakistani diaspora.Dr. Hugo Micheron, “Praising Jihadist Attacks on TikTok and the Challenge of Protecting Youths From Online Extremism,” Global Network on Extremism and Technology, December 9, 2020, https://gnet-research.org/2020/12/09/praising-jihadist-attacks-on-tiktok-and-the-challenge-of-protecting-youths-from-online-extremism/.
Haider began preaching at the Quba mosque on the edge of Derrière-les-Murs de Monseigneur in 2016, and in 2018, Haider was offered an apartment owned by the mosque.Victor Tassel, “Val-d’Oise : après sa vidéo TikTok, un imam poursuivi pour apologie du terrorisme,” Le Parisien, October 3, 2020, https://www.leparisien.fr/info-paris-ile-de-france-oise/val-d-oise-apres-sa-video-tiktok-un-imam-poursuivi-pour-apologie-du-terrorisme-03-10-2020-8396277.php; Dr. Hugo Micheron, “Praising Jihadist Attacks on TikTok and the Challenge of Protecting Youths From Online Extremism,” Global Network on Extremism and Technology, December 9, 2020, https://gnet-research.org/2020/12/09/praising-jihadist-attacks-on-tiktok-and-the-challenge-of-protecting-youths-from-online-extremism/. Haider amassed a modest following, with his Facebook page—which claims he is a “tutor/teacher” and works for the “islamic mission paris france”—featuring over 872 likes and 1,060 followers.“Qari Luqman Haider Qadri,” Facebook, https://www.facebook.com/Qari-Luqman-Haider-Qadri-846728628791639/?ref=page_internal.
Haider allegedly began posting TikTok videos in September 2020. In three videos from September 9, 10, and 25, Haider commented on the cartoons of Prophet Mohammed that French satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo sought to republish. In the first video, Haider stated that “the faithful Muslims are ready to sacrifice themselves for the prophet.” In the second, he spoke of “attacking non-Muslims, the disbelievers” and “sending them to hell.” In the final video, Haider pays tribute to an assailant, Pakistani national Zaher Mahmood, who on September 25, 2020, stabbed and injured two civilians in front of the former Charlie Hebdo offices. Haider claimed “this brave man is known in Pakistan and in all social networks. He is known all over Europe. This status is thanks to the prophet.”Victor Tassel, “Villiers-le-Bel : l’ex-imam condamné à 18 mois de prison pour apologie du terrorisme,” Le Parisien, November 26, 2020, https://www.leparisien.fr/val-d-oise-95/villiers-le-bel-l-ex-imam-condamne-a-18-mois-de-prison-pour-apologie-du-terrorisme-26-11-2020-8410704.php; Aurelien Breeden, “Paris Attack Suspect Wanted to Target Charlie Hebdo With Arson,” New York Times, September 29, 2020, https://www.nytimes.com/2020/09/29/world/europe/france-attack-suspect-terrorism.html.
Shortly after publishing those videos, on October 1, 2020, the Pontoise public prosecutor’s office arrested Haider for “apologizing for terrorism by means of videos.”Victor Tassel, “Val-d’Oise : après sa vidéo TikTok, un imam poursuivi pour apologie du terrorisme,” Le Parisien, October 3, 2020, https://www.leparisien.fr/info-paris-ile-de-france-oise/val-d-oise-apres-sa-video-tiktok-un-imam-poursuivi-pour-apologie-du-terrorisme-03-10-2020-8396277.php. While on trial, Haider claimed he posted his series of TikTok videos—which were considered “calls for murder and attack” by the public prosecutor—“for the buzz.” On November 26, the Pontoise judicial court sentenced Haider to 18 months imprisonment for justifying terrorism. Additionally, the court imposed a ban against Haider on French territory.Victor Tassel, “Villiers-le-Bel : l’ex-imam condamné à 18 mois de prison pour apologie du terrorisme,” Le Parisien, November 26, 2020, https://www.leparisien.fr/val-d-oise-95/villiers-le-bel-l-ex-imam-condamne-a-18-mois-de-prison-pour-apologie-du-terrorisme-26-11-2020-8410704.php.
Associated Groups
- Extremist entity
- Not determined.
- Type(s) of Organization:
- N/A
- Ideologies and Affiliations:
- N/A
- Position(s):
- Preacher
History
Daily Dose
Extremists: Their Words. Their Actions.
Fact:
On April 3, 2017, the day Vladimir Putin was due to visit the city, a suicide bombing was carried out in the St. Petersburg metro, killing 15 people and injuring 64. An al-Qaeda affiliate, Imam Shamil Battalion, claimed responsibility.