Telegram Founder Pavel Durov Arrested at French Airport

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Facts

  • Pavel Durov, founder and chief executive officer of the messaging app Telegram, was reportedly arrested at Le Bourget Airport outside Paris on Saturday evening.[1]
  • The 39-year-old billionaire — due to appear in court on Sunday — was taken into custody by the National Anti-Fraud Office investigators after he arrived in France from Azerbaijan on his private jet.[2][3]
  • French authorities had issued an arrest warrant for Durov as part of a preliminary investigation over allegations that he has allowed offenses, including fraud, drug trafficking, glorification of terrorism, and pedophilia, to circulate on the app.[3][4]
  • Durov is accused of insufficiently moderating Telegram, failing to take action against alleged criminal activities on his messaging app, and refusing to cooperate with authorities.[5]
  • The Russian-born tech entrepreneur, who is also a French and UAE citizen, founded Telegram in 2013 with his brother Nikolai but fled Russia in 2014. The end-to-end encrypted app allegedly allows the circulation of false information to spread widely.[6][7]
  • Meanwhile, Russia's foreign ministry has called on France to respect his rights and raised concerns about whether international human rights organizations will condemn France's move. The Russian embassy in France has demanded consular access to Durov, adding Paris has so far 'avoided engagement' on the issue.[8][9]

Sources: [1]New York Times, [2]POLITICO, [3]New York Post, [4]Breitbart, [5]BBC News, [6]Guardian, [7]Le Monde.fr, [8]Al Jazeera and [9]Almayadeen.

Narratives

  • Right narrative, as provided by RT and Breitbart. Durov is paying the price for his refusal to censor truth at the behest of governments and provide an alternative to US-owned platforms commercially exploiting users' data. His arrest is politically motivated and aimed at gaining access to the personal information of Telegram users. The West criticizes Russia for blocking free speech, but in Durov's case, it wasn't Moscow but a US ally that arrested him for allowing the public to exercise free speech.
  • Left narrative, as provided by Newsweek and POLITICO. It's one thing to protect users' privacy and freedom of speech and another to allow militants and organized criminals to discreetly communicate on Telegram and spread neo-Nazi, pedophilic, conspiratorial, and terrorist content. By basing itself in the UAE, the 'neutral' app has successfully shielded itself from moderation laws. However, it's time to bring the curtain on Telegram's impunity and make it answerable for hosting violent, far-right channels.

Predictions