German court: school had right to ban student's face veil

A German court has ruled that a public school was within its rights to prohibit a Muslim woman from wearing a face-covering veil while attending high school night classes.
The Osnabrueck administrative court today rejected the appeal of the 18-year-old German woman to wear the face-covering niqab, with only a slit for her eyes, who had argued it was important for her religious beliefs, the dpa news agency reported.
The school rejected her request, saying it hampered teachers from having "open communication" with her and thus harmed their educational mandate.
Security officials from German Chancellor Angela Merkel's conservative bloc last week proposed a ban on the burqa and other face-covering veils in public schools, courts, and in other situations, but it still needs to pass several hurdles.