"I have sometimes gone too far and been excessive": Dieudonné "ask forgiveness" from the Jewish community

Solène Delinger 11:51 a.m., January 11, 2023

Dieudonné surprised many people on Tuesday January 10 by making his mea culpa in a Franco-Israeli newspaper.

The comedian, already condemned for his anti-Semitic remarks and his racist insults, "asked forgiveness" from the people he hurt, in particular his "compatriots from the Jewish community" in the

His apology comes in the form of an open letter titled "I ask forgiveness. Dieudonné".

"I admit that I let myself go into the game of one-upmanship"

"I would like to ask forgiveness from all those whom I have been able to hit, shock, hurt through some of my artistic gestures", he begins.

"I am thinking in particular of my compatriots in the Jewish community, with whom I humbly admit having indulged in the game of one-upmanship".

Dieudonné then admits having gone "too far" and "showed excess, inappropriate provocations". 

 “For all these faults and excesses, I ask forgiveness. My ambition was to make everyone laugh, and the Jewish community is part of my world. I did not succeed in making her laugh, and I regret it”, assures the comedian who will soon be retiring.

“I am not looking for any extenuating circumstances”

"In short, my age, my health invite me today to prepare my retirement in Cameroon, on the land of my ancestors. Also, I aspire to leave the stage in peace: in peace with myself, in peace with the others, with reciprocal and sincere respect. I want to contribute my stone to the building of reconciliation in a context of exacerbated general tensions", he explains before concluding: "Let's get along well, I'm not looking for any excuse, no extenuating circumstances because no one has one when he can see that he has harmed his neighbor, I simply ask forgiveness for the harm that I could have done even without wanting it".

 "Time will tell if Dieudonné was sincere," said André Darmon, the magazine's editor-in-chief.