Footballer YOUCEF ATAL apologises for anti-semitic Instagram post with French football authorities set to investigate

 Monday, October 16, 2023 – OGC Nice defender, Youcef Atal has apologised after posting an anti-semitic video on his Instagram page.

The Algerian international shared a video of Palestinian preacher Mahmoud al-Hasanat before quickly deleting it amid the ongoing conflict with Israel.

In the video, al-Hasanat calls for God to ‘send Jewish people a dark day’.

The controversial post by Atal quickly drew attention, with the mayor of Nice, Christian Estrosi, saying that the 27-year-old should not have a future at his current club unless he ‘denounces Hamas terrorists’.

The Ligue de Football Professionnel (LFP) is set to investigate the incident, according to L’Equipe.

On Sunday, Atal took to Instagram again to apologise for the deleted post.

He said: ‘I am aware that my post shocked many people, which wasn’t my intention, and I apologise.

‘I want to clarify my point of view without any ambiguity: I strongly denounce all forms of violence, wherever in the world, and I support all victims.

I would never support a message of hate. Peace is an ideal in which I strongly believe.’

Atal, who signed for Nice from Algerian side Paradou AC in 2018 and has made over 100 appearances for the Ligue 1 club, has previously been involved in social media controversy.

In 2020, he liked an Instagram post that appeared to be condoning violence.

Atal also apologised on that occasion, saying that he didn’t ‘mean to hurt anyone’