French football star Karim Benzema has filed a complaint for defamation against French Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin, who last year said the former Real Madrid star had “notorious” links with the Muslim Brotherhood.
Gérald Darmanin said in October that Benzema "has a notorious link" with the Sunni Muslim Islamist group, reports BBC.
Benzema's lawyer said the comment "undermines" his honour and reputation.
The Muslim Brotherhood is banned in several countries, including Egypt, Russia, and Saudi Arabia.
Darmanin's comment in October came after Karim Benzema tweeted his support for the people of Gaza as "victims again of unjust bombardments which spare neither women nor children".
Darmanin said the former French striker was "well-known for his links with the Muslim Brotherhood".
"We are fighting the hydra that is the Muslim Brotherhood, because it creates an atmosphere of jihadism," the politician told conservative TV channel CNews.
Karim Benzema, 36, who plays in Saudi Arabia and is a Muslim, quickly issued a denial and threatened legal action against the minister for slander.
In his 92-page complaint, reported widely in French media on Tuesday, he says he "has never had the slightest link with the Muslim Brotherhood organisation, nor to (his) knowledge with anyone who claims to be a member of it".
The former Real Madrid star added: "I am aware of the extent to which, because of my notoriety, I am being used in political games, which are all the more scandalous given that the dramatic events since October 7 deserve something quite different from this type of statement."
His lawyer Hugues Vigier told French outlet RTL that the footballer is the victim of "political exploitation" and accused the interior minister of "sowing division in France".