An 11-year-old Egyptian girl has been banned from classes at the French school in Alexandria for wearing the Islamic headscarf, the French embassy and sources close to the school said Sunday.
The Lycee Champollion d'Alexandrie was enforcing secular principles in force under the French government's national education program, whether at home or abroad, the sources said.
Azza Omar Mohammed Zaki has been confined to study rooms at the school and her parents have been informed that she is not permitted to wear a headscarf, sources close to the school said.
Zaki had gone to class several times wearing the headscarf, which is common in Muslim-majority Egypt, since school reopened on September 5 after the summer holiday, the sources said.
The school's principal is trying to resolve the problem while respecting education regulations and the interests of the child, the French embassy in Cairo added.
Under a 1994 French government decree, pupils are banned from wearing or carrying any signs of a religious or political nature - CAIRO (AFP)
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