Topless Kate Middleton Photos Removed From Closer Website

Tabloid pulls scandalous pics but maintains they were "beautiful"

The topless photos of Kate Middleton are no more.

Well, they can't be found in the spot they originated from, anyway.

The French version of Closer has removed its collection of pics of Kate and her husband Prince William that were allegedly taken from roughly half a mile away while the pair were catching some rays while on vacation in the south of France.

In a statement accompanying just a regular old picture of the Duchess of Cambridge, the magazine doesn't say exactly what led to the decision. (Might being sued by the royal family have factored in somewhere, perhaps?)

"Following comments received after the publication of photos of Kate and William in Closer magazine France, we would like to make the following clarifications: This is the French edition of Closer and not the English edition," the mag stated.

"The photos we chose are by no means degrading. They show a young couple on vacation, beautiful, in love, living a normal life. The article reports that the couple recently vacationed in the south of France."

Earlier today, the U.K.-based Bauer Media, which licenses the Closer brand to the French publication, denounced the decision to run the pics and stated that the company had demanded the tabloid pull them down from its website and "desist in publishing them any further."

"We deplore the publication of these intrusive and offensive pictures," Bauer said. "We have absolutely no control over the editorial decisions of Closer France. In the light of their publication, we are now urgently discussing this matter with our licensee and reviewing the terms of our licence agreement with Closer France."