French far-right leader files suit over exposé purportedly revealing old antisemitic remarks

French far-right leader Jordan Bardella filed a defamation lawsuit against investigative website Mediapart over a report alleging he made antisemitic remarks in private messages from 2013 to 2015. Mediapart cited one message in which Bardella reportedly claimed, "All the banks are owned by Jews." Bardella denied the statements, calling them "completely delusional" and an attempt to destabilize his party's campaign ahead of the April presidential election, where Marine Le Pen leads polls.

French far-right leader Jordan Bardella filed a defamation lawsuit against investigative website Mediapart over a report alleging he made antisemitic remarks in private messages over a decade ago. The 31-year-old leads the National Rally (RN) party, which is seeking to clear its racist image and build close ties with Israel. The party's candidate, Marine Le Pen, is leading polls for the April presidential election. Mediapart, in a report published on Monday, said it had reviewed dozens of private messages from 2013 to 2015 — the early years of Bardella's career in the National Front, the forerunner of the RN — that it said showed a pattern of antisemitic and conspiratorial rhetoric. Mediapart cited one message in which it said Bardella claimed, "All the banks are owned by Jews." The left-leaning outlet said it had independently authenticated the private messages. Reuters did not independently authenticate them. Speaking on broadcaster CNews, Bardella said: "These statements are completely delusional. They are not mine." He added, "There is clearly an attempt to destabilize the campaign, coincidentally, just months before an election where we are leading in the polls." French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot wrote on X: "To all those with short memories: antisemitism is not a mere blip for the RN; it is the very history of this party. This is the true face of the far right." Le Pen said she believed the report could "only be a fake, a manipulation, a dirty trick."