Turkey has lifted a ban on wearing the Islamic-style headscarf in schools, allowing girls from the fifth grade and up to cover their hair in a further easing of generations-old restrictions on the public expression of faith.
The government, whose roots are in political Islam, has already lifted a ban on religious garb for university students and female civil servants, scrapping curbs stemming from the founding of Turkey's secular republic in 1923 on the ashes of Islamic Ottoman Empire.
"Our female students have yearned for the end of the ban." deputy Prime Minister Bulent Arinc said after a cabinet meeting approved the changes.
"The change applies to middle and high schools, not to primary schools." Education Minister Nabi Avci said in comments broadcast on Tuesday by CNN Turk.
The government lifted the ban on hijabs in the public sector workforce and state universities in 2013 after years of pressure from its supporters. The ban was widely seen as an infringement of women's human rights.
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