Strong reactions from socialist and environmental MPs
While in the committee, the MPs had foreseen that a request to the head of the website should necessarily precede the blocking, they approved, with the support of the government, an amendment that makes the request to the head optional.
"The heads of these websites do not publish such content by mistake or carelessness, but out of sympathy or conviction," says the bill's rapporteur, Sebastian Pietrasanta.
The provision was questioned by many socialist and environmental MPs, who expressed concerns that "the concept of 'justification of terrorism' may be interpreted broadly" and about the risk of "blocking legitimate content, other than that against which the bill is aimed.".
The anti-terrorism bill, which has been under discussion since Monday in the National Assembly, aims to limit the departures of potential jihadists to Syria or Iraq, a country that is known to be very exposed and where there is a legal loophole.
Many articles of the bill have already been voted on by MPs, mainly establishing an administrative ban on leaving the territory and creating a new offense, that of "individual terrorist operation".
The new provision will, according to the government, allow for the fight against those who radicalize on an individual basis, most often on the Internet, and take action without coming into contact with anyone.
