In France, far-right presidential candidate Eric Zemmour was fined 10,000 euros by a court in Paris for hate speech.
The lawsuit was filed after Zemour described unaccompanied migrant children as “thieves”, “rapists” and “murders” in a television speech.
Former publisher Zemmour is known for his anti-Islam and anti-immigration views.
His lawyer said he would appeal the court’s decision.
Reacting to the decision on social media, Zemmour complained that freedom of expression was restricted and said that “ideology should be removed from the courts urgently”.
Zemmour made his comments in the case on the television channel CNews, which he used to broadcast in September 2020.
Answering a question about the knife attack carried out by a young Pakistani immigrant who defends radical Islam, he said, “They have nothing to do here. Thieves, murderers, rapists, that’s all. They should be sent back and not even come.”
Zemmour has two previous convictions for hate speech.
For several weeks last year, polls had produced results suggesting that Zemmour could come in second and face current President Emmanuel Macron in the second round. However, its support has waned since then.
Current polls show Zemmour could get about 11 percent of the vote in the first round.