EU Lawmaker Rima Hassan Accuses France of "Police State" Tactics Amid Extensive Surveillance Scandal

EU lawmaker Rima Hassan accuses French authorities of using geolocation and travel data to bypass her immunity. Read the latest on the Mediapart investigation.

By: AXL Media

Published: Apr 17, 2026, 2:46 PM EDT

Source: Information for this report was sourced from Anadolu Agency and Mediapart.

The Shadow of Surveillance: Geolocation and Travel Tracking

A major scandal regarding the surveillance of an elected European official has erupted following an investigation by the online outlet Mediapart. The report alleges that Rima Hassan, a prominent French-Palestinian lawyer and MEP, was subjected to a sophisticated monitoring campaign by the Paris judicial police. Investigators reportedly reconstructed her travel history from as early as January 1, 2026—months before a formal investigation was even opened. The surveillance allegedly involved requisitioning sensitive data from transport operators like SNCF and Thalys, as well as real-time geolocation of her mobile device, allowing authorities to map her movements down to specific city streets.

A Legal Battle Over "Apology for Terrorism"

The surveillance and subsequent brief detention of Hassan in early April are rooted in a social media post she made on the platform X in March 2026. The post referenced the 1972 attack at Israel’s Lod Airport and included a quote from one of the attackers. French authorities, prompted by the Interior Ministry and organizations such as the European Jewish Organization and LICRA, have categorized the post as a potential "apology for terrorism." Hassan, who has been summoned to appear in court on July 7, maintains that the post is a historical reference and that the legal proceedings are a retaliatory response to her criticism of Israel’s actions during the 2025-2026 conflict.

Bypassing Parliamentary Immunity

A central point of contention is whether French authorities exploited legal loopholes to circumvent Hassan’s status as an MEP. Hassan has accused the state of utilizing the "flagrante delicto" (red-handed) procedure to justify her arrest without first seeking a waiver of her parliamentary immunity from the European Parliament. "This time, the French authorities deliberately sought to circumvent my parliamentary immunity in order to place me in custody," Hassan told Anadolu. She argues that while she previously cooperated with police without invoking her immunity "out of solidarity" with other criminalized activists, the use of invasive tracking methods marks a "turning point" into practices associated with "police states."