Germany's Supreme Constitutional Court Permits Female Muslim Teachers to Wear Hijab

The Federal Constitutional Court in Germany issued a ruling allowing female Muslim teachers to wear the headscarf in the German capital, Berlin.

The court's decision sparked wide reactions amid calls to amend and cancel the controversial neutrality law.

The German Federal Constitutional Court upheld a ruling issued in favor of a female Muslim teacher to allow the wearing of the hijab, by not accepting an appeal from the state of Berlin.

A spokesman for the Constitutional Court in Karlsruhe - the highest court in the German judicial system - declared that the state of Berlin may not prevent female Muslim teachers from wearing the headscarf in classrooms.

The constitutional ruling opened a legal door to review the Neutrality Law of 2005, which prohibits state employees from wearing religious or ideological symbols at work.

Until now, people in Berlin in the civil service, such as policewomen, female judiciary employees, judges, prosecutors, and teachers, are not allowed to wear any religious or ideological symbols or clothing while on duty.