PARIS, Nov 13: A French court opened a preliminary inquiry into a far-right magazine on Wednesday after the government complained about a front cover comparing France’s black justice minister to a monkey.

The ‘Minute’ weekly featured a picture of Justice Minister Christiane Taubira on its cover next to a caption that read: “Clever as a monkey, Taubira gets her banana back.”

The magazine, whose cover exploits the fact that “banana” means “smile” in French slang, will add to fears of a rise in racism in France, coming weeks after a far-right local election candidate compared Ms Taubira to a monkey on national TV.

“Racist attacks are unacceptable ... I vehemently condemn them and I am more than ever at Christiane Taubira’s side,” Prime Minister Jean-Marc Ayrault said after urging an inquiry into whether the cover broke laws against hate speech.

A spokesman for the Paris prosecutor’s office confirmed it would open a preliminary investigation.—Reuters