German court bars Muslim woman from serving as judge due to her headscarf

A German court has ruled that a Muslim woman cannot serve as a judge or prosecutor if she refuses to remove her headscarf during court proceedings, a decision critics call a violation of religious freedoms, Anadolu reports. The administrative court in Hesse announced its ruling on Monday, upholding authorities’ decision to reject the woman’s application. In a statement, the Darmstadt court acknowledged that the lawyer’s religious freedom carries significant constitutional weight. However, it ruled that this right is outweighed by competing constitutional principles—including state neutrality and the religious freedom of trial participants. According to the court’s statement, the woman was asked during her application interview whether she would remove her headscarf when interacting with trial participants. She clearly said she […]