France to ban Muslim abaya dress in state schools

FILE PHOTO: Newly appointed French Education Minister Gabriel Attal arrives to attend the weekly cabinet meeting, after a government reshuffle, at the Elysee Palace in Paris, France, July 21, 2023. REUTERS/Gonzalo Fuentes

PARIS (Reuters) - France will ban children from wearing the abaya, the loose-fitting, full-length robes worn by some Muslim women, in state-run schools, its education minister said on Sunday ahead of the back-to-school season.

France, which has enforced a strict ban on religious signs in state schools since 19th century laws removed any traditional Catholic influence from public education, has struggled to update guidelines to deal with a growing Muslim minority.