Pavel Durov set up a website in Russia where Russians could complain about Putin's government. He was ordered to stop, so he left Russia. France immediately offered him French citizenship for doing the Right Thing and setting up a website to complain about Russia, getting threatened by the Russian government, then leaving Russia so he could keep a website to complain about Russia, and Durov accepted since he loves French cuisine. He abandoned his original anti-Russian website and set up Telegram, which was also anti-Russian. He was lauded by the US, UK, France, the EU, etc.
But then Telegram grew and grew, and now has about one billion users (and is probably still growing). And the Russian government and military started using Telegram.
France had a huge part of Africa colonised before WWII, but then the US made France 'liberate' all their colonies, meaning, make those former French colonies into French neo-colonies.
The US has been the world leader in neocolonialism since 1823. The European Imperialists sent their armies to conquer a country, then the top government officials were all Europeans. The Head of State was the European Head of State. The resident Head of State was a European governor or viceroy. All senior government officials were European.
The US had an agent give money and weapons to a small group of local citizens in the country they wanted to neo-colonise, and those local citizens took over the country and formed the government. The US agent made it clear that the new government must do whatever the US ordered them to do or they would be replaced. The local leaders, helped into their positions by the US, got paid very well, but most of the country's resources went to US corporations at minuscule prices, and most of the population were impoverished, while US corporations made huge profits.
After WWII, the US forced France to 'liberate' all their former colonies and make them into neo-colonies. Now locals are the government instead of French citizens, but they must do whatever France tell them to do or be replaced, and French profits are as much or more than they had been when the neo-colonies had been colonies.
Until about a year ago. Russia, probably using Telegram, provided assistance and about half the French African neo-colonies rebelled and ejected all the French troops and 'advisors'. And all their natural resources are now being sold by the countries at world market prices with all the profits going to the former neo-colony. France are furious, and blame Russia and Telegram.
So France has planned since February, 2024, to arrest Pavel Durov; however, Durov is a billionaire who probably had access to French arrest warrants, so the plans were Top Secret. When Durov's plane called a French airport to say Durov was coming to France, the airport called the police, the government issued a warrant for Durov's arrest, and he was arrested as soon as his plane landed.
I like Telegram because of the news. They have national news from the US/UK/EU, but also news that is not US/UK/EU.
The news is basically the same on CNN, BBC, France24, DW, Euronews, and all the US/UK/EU news media: Russia, hoping to rebuild the Soviet Union, launched a totally unprovoked attack on the Ukraine, planning to dominate the country that hated the Soviet Union, and wanted to keep the Russians out. Fortunately, NATO gave the Ukraine modern, advanced weapons, while Russia only have outmoded Soviet weapons from WWII, or maybe Czarist weapons from WWI. So the entire first Russian army was completely destroyed in just a few weeks by the Ukrainian Army, who can't possibly be Nazis since they have a Jewish president, so the Russian propaganda is patently ridiculous. The Russians, while they were unable to fight the Ukrainians with their advanced weapons, did go into undefended villages and murdered all the civilians, running away as the Ukrainian military approached.
After that, Putin sent a second and third Russian Army, but all were wiped out. Russia have lost more than a million troops, while the Ukraine have only lost 31,000. The Russian economy has been totally destroyed by US sanctions, Putin is barely holding onto his presidency and will soon be handed over to the Hague, while the Ukraine will not only have all the Ukraine back, but a large part of what was formerly Russia.
But on Telegram, I can read a different story, a story where Russia are winning in the Ukraine, where most of the Ukrainians who invaded Russia are dead and the Kursk Oblast will soon be totally liberated.
And France and the US both hate Durov's Telegram and want to change it back to the rabidly anti-Russian Telegram it was when it first started.
I only use Telegram to read news. But Telegram is also an encrypted communications channel with an encryption NATO have been unable to break, but breaking the encryption will be very easy with Durov a French prisoner who can't enjoy his $billions until he fully complies with US and French demands.
France intend to hand Telegram over to the US who will use it to spread pro-US/pro-French/-pro-EU/anti-Russia/anti-PRC/anti-Iran propaganda, and where they will be able to see everything every one of the billion Telegram users are posting.
Durov has been charged with child pornography. Since there is no child pornography on the public channels that carry national news from just about every nation, if there is any, it is only on the encrypted channels with unbreakable encryption (until Durov hands over the key). So there is no way France have actually seen any child pornography on Telegram, but it could be all over all those encrypted channels, so Durov is charged as a child pornographer. French justice doesn't require extraneous, irrelevant things like 'proof'.
So Durov will either break and hand Telegram over to US Intelligence or spend the rest of his life in gaol as a child pornographer.
And those Russian lies about what is happening in Russia and the Ukraine won't be visible, everyone will have to accept the official US/UK/EU version of the news as true, since there won't be any alternatives.
So France have done the world a great service by getting rid of access to any news that isn't US/UK/EU based.
(Mike Benz says this will also make it easier for the US DoJ and Intelligence to block any pro-Trump information, since it is vital to the US ruling classes that Trump never again get any position of power, Trump and what the Deep State call his lies must be totally blocked.)