RTBF, the public broadcasting radio station in Belgium, reported that Francken posted it on Facebook with the comment: "Look what I found, zero tolerance, it`s amusing."
The post has been deleted from Francken`s Facebook page, but at the time of publishing, the minister had it favorited in his liked tweets.
In a statement Thursday to CNN, Francken said he didn`t intend to hurt anyone by sharing the clip and didn`t understand the reaction. "I do not want to be drawn into the excitement of the day," he said, explaining why he later removed the post.
The creator of the GIF told CNN he was surprised to see it used politically. "The original message has taken (on) a whole new meaning," Roberto Salvador said.
He explained the GIF was inspired after reading an article in Le Vif magazine about Francken`s "excessive" use of force while detaining undocumented African immigrants in Brussels` working-class neighborhood of Molenbeek.
"The media quickly talked about `racist video,` but it is purely contextual," he said.
Several lawmakers publicly criticized Francken for the post.
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