BELGIAN SCHOOLS BAN HIJAB

Dutch-language public schools in Belgium will ban the wearing of hijab in classes, following the suit of many European countries. “This decision promotes the feeling of equality and prevents group formation or segregation on the basis of external symbols of life philosophy,” the schools said in a statement. The ban will affect 700 schools in the northern region of Flanders, including some in Brussels. School officials argue that the ban was taken to guarantee equal treatment of all pupils within the school grounds. Most schools in Flanders are Catholic and run by municipalities. Schools in Flanders that are financed by other Belgian communities are not bound by the ban. The ban comes ahead of a court ruling on a decision by two Dutch-language schools in the northern city of Antwerp to ban the Muslim veil.