Iranian judicial authorities have shut a French language centre in Tehran linked to the French Embassy, accusing it of “illegal activities”, including operating without a licence and facilitating the departure of talented Iranians.
The Tehran Prosecutor’s Office ordered the French Language Centre (CLF) to be sealed on Sunday, saying the French Embassy had received repeated warnings from local authorities to obtain an operating licence in accordance with Iranian laws and regulations but had failed to do so.
According to a statement carried by Iran’s judiciary-affiliated Mizan news agency, the centre’s activities “extended beyond language instruction”, with authorities accusing it of using educational programmes as a cover for projects they said were “contrary to the Iranian-Islamic culture and national security”.
“It was involved in identifying and networking of individuals and facilitating the departure of talented Iranians from the country,” the statement charged.
The closure marks the latest diplomatic dispute between Tehran and Paris, following tensions over prisoners and the reciprocal expulsion of diplomatic staff and cultural attachés.
It also comes amid wider tensions between Iran and several European countries, including Sweden and Germany, involving the summoning of ambassadors over remarks by senior officials and diplomats being declared persona non grata.
France, along with Germany, the UK and the U.S., recently put forward a resolution at the International Atomic Energy Agency’s Board of Governors concerning Iran’s nuclear programme. The resolution requested that Iran be reported to the UN Security Council and General Assembly.
The latest Tehran-Paris dispute comes after Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi on Saturday hit back at human rights allegations made by his French counterpart, Jean-Noël Barrot, criticising France over what he described as its silence following the killing of Iranian schoolchildren in U.S.-Israeli airstrikes.
“Stop your crocodile tears. Your silence when the U.S. massacred our schoolkids said it all,” he said in a post on X, addressing Barrot.
Araghchi has travelled to New York to attend the UN General Assembly and is expected to discuss bilateral issues and regional developments with counterparts, including Barrot, on the sidelines of the gathering.
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