Six Christian protesters were reportedly arrested in Paris on Monday for demonstrating against the 2024 Olympics opening ceremony without approval from the French government.
The group, who had a bus displaying the message "stop attacks on Christians", said they were protesting a controversial skit that parodied Leonardo da Vinci's 'The Last Supper.'
The performance, which featured drag queens, a transgender model and a naked singer has been condemned as 'offensive' by numerous Christian leaders and prompted an apology from organisers.
The CitizenGO's campaign argues that the tableau was anti-Christan and hate-promoting and has likened the arrests by armed French police as a “censorship” akin to an “authoritarian regime".
Christian campaigner Carole Farrow told Premier Christian News that police had made the arrests under orders from “high-level political authorities”, despite the activists “not violating any local laws".
According to Farrow, the protesters were handcuffed, strip-searched, denied access to their devices, and held in police custody overnight without food or water on “non-existent charges”.
She also claimed they were subjected to "severe psychological pressure" and illegally denied contact with lawyers and family members.
A French lawyer representing the protesters has suggested that the government may have overstepped legal boundaries, stating:
“It appears impossible to constitute the crime of failing to communicate a protest because there is no protest in the presence of one unique vehicle. The prosecutor pushed the law to its limits to stop the bus and limit their free speech. Moreover, the procedure was irregular.”
The activists were released in the early hours of Tuesday morning, after twelve hours in custody.
Premier has reached out to the French authorities for comment.