France overturns controversial burkini ban

France’s top administrative court has overturned a ban on burkinis in a Mediterranean town, in a decision that should set legal precedent regarding a swimsuit crackdown that has divided the country and provoked shock around the world.

The ruling by the Council of State specifically concerns a ban on the Muslim garment in the Riviera town of Villeneuve-Loubet, but the binding decision is expected to impact on all the 30 or so French resort municipalities that have issued similar decrees.

The bans grew increasingly controversial as images circulated online of some Muslim women being ordered to remove body- concealing garments on French Riviera beaches.