France is enforcing a ban on the “niqab” and not allowing Muslim women into the country if they refuse to take off a face veil upon request.
The women disembarked Monday from a Qatar Airways flight from Doha at 2:30 p.m. but were denied entry into France after refusing to lift their veils to reveal their faces to the immigration police who carry out border control duties.
The women were “issued a fine according to the law,” said an official source quoted by the AFP news agency. Such fines total approximately 150 euros, or $190 for each violation.
The women were sent back to Doha the same evening, according to the airport source.
France outlawed the wearing of a niqab (full face veil) — part of the burqa, or full body covering — in public in April 2011, the first European nation to do so. French authorities cited security concerns as the reason for the ban.
Last December, a similar was passed in Canada, also requiring Muslim women to remove their face veils if they wish to become Canadian citizens. The woman’s face must be visible during the ceremony conferring Canadian citizenship on her, and for the woman to face the judge administering the oath of citizenship.
Italy, Australia and numerous other nations are also considering similar legislation.
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