France’s hard-left firebrand Jean-Luc Melenchon on Sunday defended himself against accusations of antisemitism, which were sparked by his mocking the pronunciation of the name “Epstein” during a rally.

The latest row involving the founder of the France Unbowed (LFI) party came ahead of municipal elections next month and the 2027 presidential vote, as calls grow for left-wing politicians to break with the LFI leader.

On Thursday, speaking at a gathering in the southeastern city of Lyon, Melenchon invoked the name of Jeffrey Epstein, after recent disclosures detailed the convicted sex offender’s extensive ties to the world’s rich and famous.

“I wanted to say ‘Epstein’, sorry, it sounds more Russian, ‘Epsteen’,” said Melenchon, a three-time presidential candidate expected to run again in elections next year.

“So now you’ll say Epsteen instead of Epstein, Franckensteen instead of Frankenstein,” he told a laughing audience.

The comments sparked outrage from across the political spectrum in France.

Melenchon, 74, had said his comments were “ironic” and on Sunday, he rejected the accusations again.

“I am not antisemitic,” he told a crowd of some 2,000 people at a rally for an LFI candidate in the southern town of Perpignan. “It wasn’t me who made the connection between Epstein and his religion,” he said. “That man had no religion, and there is no God who can claim such scum and filth as his own.” “Don’t associate Islam with those who kill, and don’t associate Epstein with religion either,” he said, to enthusiastic applause from an audience of all ages, many waving French and Palestinian flags.

The LFI and Melenchon have faced accusations of failing to properly condemn the October 7, 2023 attacks by Palestinian militant group Hamas on Israel.