France, Epstein case: the Elysée takes observe of Jack Lang’s resignation | EUROtoday

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The Elysée has “noted the resignation” of Jack Lang from the presidency of the Arab World Institute, within the context of developments linked to the Jeffrey Epstein case. The choice follows the launch of a preliminary investigation by the French National Financial Prosecutor’s Office into laundering the proceeds of aggravated tax fraud involving Lang and his daughter Caroline, as reported by Agence France-Presse.

The story is a part of a extra decided by the current publication of tens of millions of paperwork referring to Epstein by the United States Department of Justice, foreseen by the Epstein Files Transparency Act and culminating in a brand new tranche of over 3 million pages printed on the finish of January.

The so-called “Epstein Files” embody a mass of supplies – together with emails, paperwork and pictures – which in current days has generated a collection of political and judicial penalties in a number of international locations. In France, along with the Lang case, authorities have reported the emergence of tried disinformation campaigns linked to the discharge of the information, together with an operation attributed to Russia-linked teams that unfold faux information about President Emmanuel Macron’s alleged involvement within the affair.

The unsealing of the US papers has additionally sparked repercussions in different European international locations: within the UK, former minister Peter Mandelson resigned from the House of Lords after his title appeared within the paperwork, whereas in Scandinavia public figures had been pressured to apologize or go away positions.

In France, the prime minister and overseas minister had already requested Lang for explanations about his relationship with Epstein earlier than the case broke out publicly, and rising political strain had pushed Lang’s daughter to resign from an affiliation place.