CFL, Alouettes fine Khalif Mitchell for offensive tweets

The Canadian Football League and the Montreal Alouettes have fined Montreal Alouettes defensive lineman Khalif Mitchell for tweets he posted Thursday.

The league and the Alouettes have separate social media policies, and Mitchell violated both of them.

The costs aren't disclosed under league policy. However, the Alouettes stated that they have fined Mitchell the maximum amount possible.

Mitchell tweeted a YouTube link to a documentary on the Holocaust, titled "The Greatest Lie Ever Told," as well as another YouTube link to a video claiming the terrorist group ISIS is fake.

Mitchell defended himself throughout the day, replying to Twitter users calling him out for his tweets.

Despite the fines and controversy, Mitchell's Twitter feed still contains many of the offensive tweets.

"There is absolutely no place in our league for commentary used to divide or disparage others along the lines of sex, race, religion or sexual orientation," said CFL commissioner Jeffrey L. Orridge in an official statement. "While we acknowledge that players have a right to hold and express their own opinions, in no circumstance do we condone activity or comments that are derogatory or inappropriate, putting the League's reputation in question - and we feel Mr. Mitchell's recent behavior on social media has violated these principles."

The Alouettes released a statement of their own.

"His postings are disappointing and in no way reflect the opinions and values of the Montreal Alouettes Football Club," said Alouettes president and CEO Mark Weightman. "His postings were completely unacceptable and the Alouettes apologize to anyone who was offended by them."

This isn't the first time Mitchell has had issues with his social media presence. In 2012, he made inappropriate comments about people of Chinese descent.

The former B.C. Lion signed a three-year deal with the Alouettes earlier in the year.