Top French court upholds ban on Muslim abaya robes in schools

A woman wearing an abaya dress walks through the streets of Lille, northern France, on August 28, 2023. AFP - DENIS CHARLET

France's highest administrative court on Thursday ruled the government's ban on abayas – a shoulder-to-toe over-garment – in schools was legal.

A Muslim rights group had sought to overturn the ban on the robe worn by some Muslim women and girls on the grounds that it was discriminatory.