DAMASCUS About 1,200 women teachers have lost their jobs in Syria for wearing the full Islamic veil, a human rights group said on Tuesday.

“National Education Minister Ali Saad last month ordered the transfer of 1,200 teachers who wear the niqab (full veil) from the education ministry to the local administration ministry,” said the president of the Syrian League for the Defence of Human Rights.

Abdel-Karim Rihawi said the move did not affect the wearing of headscarves, which is common among women in Syria.

“No article of the labour code bans women from being entirely veiled at the workplace,” said Rihawi. Wearing the niqab was a right “guaranteed by international treaties on human rights and by the Syrian constitution.” Rihawi, who said he himself is not a supporter of the niqab, said the ban was imposed after complaints from some parents. —AFP