France Denies Citizenship Over Full Islamic Veil

The French government has denied citizenship to a foreign national on the grounds that he forces his wife, a French citizen, to wear the full Islamic veil. The man, whose current nationality was not disclosed, needed citizenship to settle in the country. The French immigration minister said the man's request for citizenship was being refused because he was "compelling his wife to wear the all-covering veil, depriving her of the freedom to come and go with her face uncovered, and rejected the principles of secularism and equality between men and women."

A parliamentary committee last week proposed a partial ban on full veils, reports the BBC. It also recommended refusing citizenship to anyone showing visible signs of "radical religious practice."
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