United News of Bangladesh

France’s former Culture Minister Jack Lang has stepped down as head of a Paris cultural center following allegations of past financial ties to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein that led to a tax investigation. He is the most prominent figure in France to be affected by the release of the Epstein files on Jan. 30 by the U.S. Department of Justice. He is widely known for serving as culture minister under Socialist President François Mitterrand during the 1980s and 1990s. Lang, 86, was summoned to the French Foreign Ministry, which oversees the Arab World Institute, on Sunday, but he instead submitted his resignation. “He is very sad and deeply hurt to be leaving a position he loves,” his lawyer Laurent Merlet told RTL radio on Sunday. “He placed the interests of the Arab World Institute above all else,” Merlet said, adding that his client denied the allegations and described them as inaccurate. The Foreign Ministry confirmed his resignation on Saturday evening. Read More: Starmer faces mounting pressure over Mandelson-Epstein saga The financial prosecutors’ office said it has opened an investigation into Lang and his daughter, Caroline, over alleged “aggravated tax fraud laundering.” French investigative news website Mediapart reported last week on alleged financial and business links between the Lang family and Jeffrey Epstein through an offshore company based in the U.S. Virgin Islands in the Caribbean Sea. Jack Lang’s name appeared more than 600 times in the Epstein files, indicating intermittent correspondence between 2012 and 2019. His daughter was also named in the released documents. Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot has “taken note” of Lang’s resignation and has begun the process of seeking his successor, the foreign ministry said. Lang has led the Arab World Institute since 2013.