The French authorities will prevent Muslims in a northern Paris suburb from praying in the streets, the interior minister says. Local worshippers have been protesting the recent closure of a convenient prayer room. Gerard Collomb reiterated his opposition to prayers staged by the Union of Muslim Worship and Cultural Associations of Clichy-la-Garenne (UAMC) every Friday in the city center since March after a hall they had rented from the town was remodeled into a multimedia library under the new mayor. A dedicated worship center has been built since then,
but local Muslims are unhappy about its location and size. They will not have prayers on the street, we will prevent street praying,” Collomb told Questions Politics while promising to find a mutually acceptable solution “in the next few weeks.” “Muslims must have a place of worship to pray,” he stressed. The bickering between the city administration and the local Muslim community has been going on since March, when police were called to expel the UAMC from the premises pursuant to a court order, reaffirmed by the Council of State in November of last year. READ MORE
