France bans wearing veils

The French senate has approved a law banning any veils that cover the face, making France the first European country to plan such a measure.



The ban included the burqa, the full-body covering worn by some Muslim women.

The law was passed by a vote of 246 to one, with about 100 abstentions coming essentially from left-leaning politicians.



The legislation was overwhelmingly approved by the lower house of parliament in July and will now go into effect in six months.



In a survey earlier this year, the Pew Global Attitudes Project found that French people had backed the ban by a margin of more than four to one.



Some 82 percent of the people polled approved the ban, while 17 percent did not approved.