Iran closes French institute over Charlie Hebdo cartoons

Iran's Foreign Ministry called the closure of the French Institute for Research in Iran a “first step” in response to the cartoons, which the magazine had billed as a show of support for anti-government demonstrations that have convulsed Iran for nearly four months.

The building of "Institut Français de Recherche en Iran" or French Institute for Research in Iran, is pictured, in Tehran, Iran, Thursday, Jan. 5, 2023. Iranian authorities ordered closure of the institute on Thursday over the publication of offensive caricatures of the country's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei in the French satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo. (AP Photo)

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Iran on Thursday shut down a decades-old French research institute in response to cartoons published by the French satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo that mocked the country’s ruling clerics.

Iran’s Foreign Ministry called the closure of the French Institute for Research in Iran a “first step” in response to the cartoons, which the magazine had billed as a show of support for anti-government demonstrations that have convulsed Iran for nearly four months.

The ministry said it would “seriously pursue the case and take the required measures” to hold France accountable.

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On Wednesday, Iran summoned the French ambassador to complain about the cartoons.

The magazine has a long history of publishing vulgar cartoons mocking Islamists, which critics say are deeply insulting to Muslims.

Two French-born al-Qaida extremists attacked the newspaper’s office in 2015, killing 12 cartoonists, and it has been the target of other attacks over the years.

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