![Paris officials rally in support of school headmaster in hijab row](https://www.portugalcolonial.pt/media/shared/articles/dc/7c/ed/Paris-officials-rally-in-support-of-971475.jpg)
-
Schmidt reign off to winning start as Australia beat Wales 25-16
-
Russian wrestlers reject Olympics invitation
-
Raducanu rediscovers Wimbledon 'fun' factor after turbulent spell
-
Winning all that matters at Euro 2024 for Mbappe's minimalist France
-
Eight dead, two million affected by Bangladesh floods
-
Robertson pleased to 'find a way' past England in tough Test baptism
-
Martin sets lap record to secure German MotoGP pole
-
'Shattered' Germany set sights on World Cup after Euros exit
-
Olympic hope Pedersen pulls out of Tour de France
-
Djokovic eyes sweet 16 at Wimbledon as Swiatek takes on 'gangster'
-
End beckons again for Ronaldo after Portugal Euros KO
-
New Zealand edge England 16-15 in tense, brutal first Test
-
Turkey take on Dutch in politically charged Euros quarter-final, England face Swiss
-
Calling for better ties with West, Iran reformist wins presidency
-
Cybercrime groups restructuring after major takedowns: experts
-
Activists hail Sierra Leone child marriage ban, urge action on FGM
-
Marsch relishing Canada's semi clash with Argentina
-
Canada stun Venezuela on penalties to reach Copa semis
-
Iran reformist Pezeshkian holds early lead in runoff vote
-
Swiatek faces 'gangster' threat, Djokovic feels need for Wimbledon speed
-
France holds its breath ahead of uncertain vote
-
Starmer begins UK 'rebuild' after landslide election win
-
Paris's Moulin Rouge inaugurates new windmill sails ahead of Olympics
-
Pan, Rai share halfway lead in PGA John Deere Classic
-
'I was feeling terrible' in debate, Biden says in TV interview
-
France coach Deschamps savours ending penalty hoodoo, defends Mbappe
-
Thompson bids farewell to Warriors after exit
-
Portugal exit Euros with pride, will return stronger: Martinez
-
UK's new PM Starmer speaks to world leaders, names top team
-
Spain and France to face off in Euros last four, Turkey lament 'unfair' Demiral ban
-
Israel says negotiators to hold fresh Gaza truce talks next week
-
France beat Portugal on penalties to reach Euro 2024 semi-finals
-
Endrick to start for Brazil in Uruguay Copa clash: Dorival
-
Heartbreak for Germany fans after dramatic Euros exit
-
Beryl heads for Texas after causing damage, no deaths in Mexico
-
Nagelsmann laments late penalty decision as hosts Germany exit Euros
-
Biden declares he's all in ahead of high-risk TV interview
-
Spain team 'is a winning horse', says De la Fuente
-
Bows at the ready, Chad villagers battle kidnappings
-
Alcaraz mimics Bellingham goal celebration after Wimbledon win
-
Olmo hopes Pedri can make speedy return for Euros semi-finalists Spain
-
Retiring Kroos hopeful despite Germany's 'bitter' Euros exit
-
Southgate turns on English 'entitlement' over claims of easy Euros draw
-
Merino extra-time goal sends Spain past Germany to Euro semis
-
Koeman demands Dutch silence fervent Turkish fans at Euros
-
Brad Pitt at Silverstone for filming of F1 movie
-
Raducanu storms into Wimbledon last 16
-
California fires spread in July 4 weekend heatwave
-
Alcaraz wins five-set Wimbledon thriller as Gauff eases through
-
Demiral Euros ban 'unfair' but Turkish pride will grow, says coach Montella
![Paris officials rally in support of school headmaster in hijab row](https://www.portugalcolonial.pt/media/shared/articles/dc/7c/ed/Paris-officials-rally-in-support-of-971475.jpg)
Paris officials rally in support of school headmaster in hijab row
French lawmakers and officials joined dozens of people who gathered in Paris on Friday in a show of support for a school principal who resigned after receiving death threats in a hijab row.
This week the headmaster at the Maurice-Ravel senior school in eastern Paris quit after receiving death threats online following an altercation with a student last month.
His departure sparked outrage, with Prime Minister Gabriel Attal saying France would seek to defend secularism.
On Friday morning around 50 people gathered in front of the school in the French capital's 20th district, heeding the call from the Socialist Party, an AFP journalist saw.
Lawmakers and officials including Paris deputy mayor Emmanuel Gregoire took part in the gathering amid heightened security. Several parents also turned up.
Frederic, a parent at the school who declined to give his last name, said that for the past month pupils there had been "a bit agitated".
The headmaster's resignation had left parents feeling guilty, he told AFP.
"We wondered if we'd shown enough support."
Secularism and religion are hot-button issues in France, which is home to Europe's largest Muslim community.
The headmaster's departure comes amid tensions in France following several attack threats aimed at schools, and the murder of two teachers by radicalised former pupils, in 2020 and 2023.
In 2004, authorities banned school children from wearing "signs or outfits by which students ostensibly show a religious affiliation" -- such as headscarves, turbans or kippas -- on the basis of the country's secular laws, which are meant to guarantee neutrality in state institutions.
- 'Collective failure' -
Martin Raffet, head of parents' association FCPE Paris, said that some pupils did not understand the concept of secularism.
"The law needs to be discussed. Some pupils don't understand it.
"We need to take the time to explain it to them and show them that we don't stigmatise religions," Raffet said.
"We can't protect school heads from this type of attack," he added.
In late February, the headmaster had asked three students to remove their Islamic headscarves on the school premises.
But one of them -- an adult who was attending for vocational training -- refused and an altercation ensued, according to prosecutors.
The principal later received death threats online.
He said that he had taken the decision to leave, citing his safety and that of the school.
Education officials said he had taken "early retirement".
The SGEN-CFDT teachers' union called his departure "a collective failure".
"The repetition of this type of scenario, against a backdrop of the instrumentalisation of religious beliefs, is unacceptable and could lead to tragedy," the union said.
"We know this only too well in the French education system, following the murder of Samuel Paty."
Paty, a 47-year-old history and geography teacher, was stabbed and then beheaded by a radicalised Islamist near his secondary school in the Paris suburb of Conflans-Sainte-Honorine in 2020.
Nogueira--PC