The French courts have decided to prolong the detainment of Telegram CEO Pavel Durov, which resulted in personalities such as Elon Musk and Robert F. Kennedy Jr. expressing support. The first to offer his support was Elon Musk, who recollected an interview of Telegram CEO Pavel Durov with the former Fox News anchor, Tucker Carlson.

During the interview, the Telegram CEO elaborated that American authorities demanded that he integrates a backdoor in his application so that agencies such as the FBI and the CIA can spy on individuals using it. Elon Musk shared the hashtag #FreePavel and he later tweeted "POV: It’s 2030 in Europe and you’re being executed for liking a meme."

Musk criticized Mark Zuckerberg by quoting a post from a user who questioned why the Meta CEO hadn't faced arrest for similar allegations as those brought against Durov. He said  “Because he already caved into censorship pressure. Instagram has a massive child exploitation problem, but no arrest for Zuck, as he censors free speech and gives governments backdoor access to user data.”

Telegram CEO Pavel Durov
Image Source: RM

Meanwhile, Robert F. Kennedy Jr. criticized the Emmanuel Macron government for its efforts to suppress free speech. He posted "France just arrested Pavel Durov, founder & CEO of the encrypted, uncensored Telegram platform. The need to protect free speech has never been more urgent.”

Pavel Durov was arrested by the French police on August 24 atLe Bourget airport, near Paris after flying on a private plane, owned by Azerbitian origin. His arrest came as a result of claims that Telegram Messenger did not take measures to deal with problems such as; fraudulent activities, sales of narcotics, harassment, criminal biker groups, and the support of terrorism.

Following the arrest, Telegram released a statement asserting that Durov had "nothing to hide," despite the serious nature of the accusations. The company published a statement via the app which stated  “Telegram abides by EU laws, including the Digital Services Act -- its moderation is within industry standards.Pavel Durov has nothing to hide and travels frequently in Europe. It is absurd to claim that a platform or its owner are responsible for abuse of that platform.”

Pavel Durov, whose net worth is estimated at $15.5 billion by Forbes, left Russia in 2014 after refusing to comply with a court order that demanded access to Telegram's encrypted messages. In August 2021, he became a French citizen, though he relocated to Dubai with Telegram in 2017. Reports suggest that Durov has also obtained citizenship in the United Arab Emirates and the Caribbean nation of St. Kitts and Nevis.

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