PARIS – Amid increasing anti-Muslim hostility in France, a video showing a restaurateur in a Paris suburb, apparently refusing to serve two Muslim women, has sparked anger in France and calls for protest.
“The terrorists are Muslim and all Muslims are terrorists… They recently killed a priest. This is a secular country and I have a right to an opinion… I don’t want people like you here. Full stop,” a footage posted online showed the restaurant chef telling the women, The Independent reported.
Appearing visibly shocked by the exchange, the women told the man they “do not wish to be served by a racist.”
He finally told them to “get out”, to which they replied “don’t worry, we’re leaving”.
The incident took place at Le Cenacle restaurant in Tremblay-en-France on Saturday night.
Urging a boycott of the restaurant, members of the local Muslim community gathered outside the restaurant this weekend to demand an apology for the incident.
The CCIF (Committee Against Islamophobia in France) has issued a statement of support to the two women and pledged to give “emotional and legal support” to them.
On Sunday, the man apologized to a group who had gathered outside.
“I spoke out of turn and I apologize, I have a friend who died in the Bataclan attacks and wrongly mixed everything up. I do not truly believe the things I said, my comments did not reflect what I really think,” Le Parisien reported.
A court ruling on Friday overturned France’s controversial burkini ban on civil liberties grounds, but some local authorities have vowed to keep it in place, the BBC reported.
The man’s comments follow a fierce debate in recent months about Muslim integration and France’s interpretation of secular values, emerging after a string of attacks around the country.
Several French towns have recently taken the decision to ban a full-body swimsuit worn by some Muslim women, known as the burkini, in public, causing more uproar.
France’s highest administrative court on Friday suspended the ban in the Mediterranean town of Villeneuve-Loubet, pending a definitive ruling.
President Francois Hollande also came out last week to warn against “stigmatization” of Muslims, along with other politicians.