France's highest administrative court struck a blow against controversial 'burkini bans' Friday, upending one town's decision to prohibit the full-body swimsuit on its beaches.
The Council of State suspended the ban in Villeneuve-Loubet, just west of Nice, saying it "seriously, and clearly illegally, breached the fundamental freedoms to come and go, the freedom of beliefs and individual freedom."
The Riviera town was one of roughly 30 municipalities to forbid beachgoers from donning the swimsuit often worn by Muslim women, reporter Jake Cigainero tells our Newscast unit.
The ruling is expected to affect those other bans, The Associated Press reports. And a lawyer representing the Human Rights League — one of the groups that challenged Villeneuve-Loubet's ban — tells the news service that the decision "is meant to set legal precedent."
