Qatar Sues Top National Front Official for Saying Doha Financed Terrorism

Qatar will sue Florian Philippot, a vice president of France’s right-wing National Front party, for accusing Doha of "financing Islamism that kills."

MOSCOW (Sputnik) — Qatar said Monday it was suing Florian Philippot, a vice president of France’s right-wing National Front party, for accusing Doha of financing terrorism.

On January 9, two days after the attack on the office of the Charlie Hebdo magazine in Paris, Philippot accused Qatar and Saudi Arabia of being "the countries financing Islamism that kills."

On Monday, Qatar said in a statement it did "not have another choice but defend its name before the French courts," as its reputation and its citizens were directly affected, France Info reported.

The National Front vice president reacted by saying that "Qatar will not silence me."

"An Islamist dictatorship will not dictate to the French what they have the right to say," Philippot said on Twitter.

Le Qatar ne me fera pas taire. Une dictature islamiste n'a pas à dicter aux Français ce qu'ils ont le droit de dire. Appel aux démocrates!

— Florian Philippot (@f_philippot) 31 мая 2015

Twelve people were killed in the attack on the Charlie Hebdo magazine, notorious for publishing caricatures of the Prophet Muhammad.