Viral Ad Shows Eiffel Tower Draped In Hijab, French Politicians Call It ‘Provocative’, ‘Terrifying Political Project’

<p>A promotional video by a Dutch modest clothing brand featuring the Eiffel Tower draped in a headscarf has sparked a row, with several French politicians criticising the move.</p>
<p>The animation video, posted by Merrachi on TikTok this week, has now gone viral on social media.</p>
<p>”The French government hates to see Merrachi coming,” the video of the brand, that primarily caters to Muslim consumers, captioned drawing criticism from French leaders.&nbsp;</p>
<p>The caption of the video stated, “Remember when they banned the hijab?” The post by the clothing brand on the TikTok suggested its launch in the country.</p>
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<p dir=”ltr” lang=”en”>🇫🇷The clothing brand <a href=”https://twitter.com/merrachi?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw”>@Merrachi</a> announced the launch of sales in France with an animated video showing the Eiffel Tower wearing a hijab.<br />The Dutch company accompanied the animation with the text: “The French government hates it when Merrachi appears.” The caption references the&hellip; <a href=”https://t.co/qulTyWzpMr”>pic.twitter.com/qulTyWzpMr</a></p>
&mdash; Teplitsa for business (@Teplitsa_) <a href=”https://twitter.com/Teplitsa_/status/1900093204990513663?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw”>March 13, 2025</a></blockquote>
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<p>It was also shared on Instagram by Merrachi with the caption, “Spotted: The Eiffel Tower wearing MERRACHI, mashallah! Looks like she just joined the modest fashion community.”</p>
<p>The animated video begins with the Eiffel Tower in the French capital draped in a golden brown coat. The 15-second short video then showed the tower headscarf wrapped around the tower.</p>
<p>The video evoked sharp reaction from several leaders in France who called out Merrachi for the “provocative advertisement” and “terrifying political project.”</p>
<p>Lisette Pollet, a right-wing French MP, called the provocative advertisement ‘unacceptable’.&nbsp;</p>
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<p dir=”ltr” lang=”fr”>🇫🇷 INACCEPTABLE !<br /><br />La Tour Eiffel, symbole de la France, d&eacute;tourn&eacute;e par la marque Merrachi qui la couvre d&rsquo;un voile islamique dans une publicit&eacute; provocatrice.<br /><br />👉 Une instrumentalisation id&eacute;ologique et commerciale qui heurte nos valeurs r&eacute;publicaines et notre patrimoine. <a href=”https://t.co/A6GgVkWRPU”>pic.twitter.com/A6GgVkWRPU</a></p>
&mdash; Lisette Pollet 🕊🎗️Ⓜ️ 🇫🇷 (@LisettePollet) <a href=”https://twitter.com/LisettePollet/status/1899504665135403035?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw”>March 11, 2025</a></blockquote>
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<p>”The Eiffel Tower, symbol of France, has been hijacked by the Merrachi brand, which has covered it with an Islamic veil in a provocative advertisement. An ideological and commercial instrumentalization which offends our republican values ​​and our heritage,” Pollet said in a post on X.</p>
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<p dir=”ltr” lang=”fr”>La marque islamique <a href=”https://twitter.com/hashtag/Merrachi?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw”>#Merrachi</a> se paye une publicit&eacute; qui voile.. la <a href=”https://twitter.com/hashtag/TourEiffel?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw”>#TourEiffel</a>. <br />Quel programme ! <br />C&rsquo;est un projet politique terrifiant, une provocation inadmissible ! <br />Demandez des comptes &agrave; <br /><br />documentation@toureiffel.paris<a href=”https://twitter.com/hashtag/TourEiffel?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw”>#TourEiffel</a> <a href=”https://twitter.com/hashtag/Islamisme?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw”>#Islamisme</a> <a href=”https://t.co/SW2KtmUyo1″>pic.twitter.com/SW2KtmUyo1</a></p>
&mdash; J&eacute;r&ocirc;me Buisson (@jerome_buisson) <a href=”https://twitter.com/jerome_buisson/status/1899520166536380701?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw”>March 11, 2025</a></blockquote>
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<p>J&eacute;r&ocirc;me Buisson, an MP with the far-right National Rally, called it a ‘terrifying political project’ and ‘an unacceptable provocation’.</p>
<p>”The Islamic brand #Merrachi pays for advertising which hides… the #TourEiffel. What a program! This is a terrifying political project, an unacceptable provocation!” he said.&nbsp;</p>