Stop Homophobie files Paris complaint against Elon Musk as Durov backs X in France probe

Why X is under scrutiny in France

The legal backdrop is a French inquiry into X. Reports say France opened an inquiry in January 2025 into allegations that the platform was used to interfere in French politics, and that the probe later widened to cover allegations involving Holocaust denial, sexual deepfakes and possible complicity in the distribution of child sexual abuse images ^[1][10].

Le Monde reported that the Paris prosecutor’s office confirmed on May 7, 2026, that it had opened a criminal investigation on May 6 into X’s parent company, Musk and former X chief executive Linda Yaccarino ^[19]. The same report said this followed Musk’s failure to appear for a voluntary interview summons on April 20 ^[19].

At this stage, the reports describe allegations, complaints and investigations—not final judicial findings against Musk, X or Yaccarino ^[14][19].

How Pavel Durov responded

Durov publicly sided with Musk and X. Moneycontrol reported that the Telegram CEO said the “free world should stand with X” amid the French probe ^[22]. In posts summarized by the Times of India, Durov claimed France was accusing X of conduct that he said the French government itself engages in, including illegal personal-data collection, insecure processing of personal data, extracting data from automated systems and violating the secrecy of electronic communications ^[23].

Durov also framed the probe as an effort to silence “free speech platforms” under pretexts, according to the same report ^[23]. Those were Durov’s claims; the provided reports do not establish them as proven facts. They also do not describe him as responding directly to Stop Homophobie’s complaint, but to the investigation and legal pressure on X ^[22][23].

The bottom line

Stop Homophobie’s move was formal and legal: a Paris complaint accusing Musk of public insults tied to sexual orientation or gender identity ^[14]. Durov’s response was political and public-facing: he defended Musk and X, accused France of hypocrisy and cast the investigation as a threat to platforms that present themselves as pro-free-speech ^[22][23].

The unresolved question is what French authorities do next. The broader X matter remains an investigation into alleged platform abuses, while Stop Homophobie’s complaint adds a separate claim focused on Musk’s alleged language toward French magistrates ^[1][14][19].