Two Muslim women were ordered out of a swimming pool at a French holiday village because they were wearing "burkinis".
The pair leapt into the water wearing the specialised bathing suits that covered their entire bodies, including a veil over the head.
The incident comes just ten days after French MPs voted to impose a full ban on wearing a burka.
The new law, which brands the garment "an insult to the country's values", means women will be fined or jailed for hiding their faces in public.
The women at the Rives des Corbieres holiday camp in Port Leucate, southern France, were told the rules stated only swimming costumes may be worn in the water.
They were asked to either change into conventional bikinis or one-piece costumes or leave the swimming pool.
Police were then called to the drama on Wednesday after the husband of one of the women threatened the pool's lifeguard with a bowling ball.
A holiday camp spokesman said: "The husbands became very irate that their wives were not allowed to swim with their bodies covered, and one of them threatened violence.
"Police were called and he eventually backed down. The two Muslim couples left the pool area and no charges were brought."
Regional government official Marie-Paule Bardeche said: "This is an issue stemming from the holiday centre's own regulations.
"They state men and women must wear ordinary swimwear for hygiene reasons. Men are not even allowed to wear long shorts in the water."
Last year a Muslim woman was banned from wearing a burkini at a public swimming pool also for hygiene reasons.
She later failed in her bid to sue the council in the Paris suburb for discrimination.
Police have this year also stopped and fined two women for wearing a burka while driving because the garb impaired their field of vision.
Two Muslim women were ordered out of a swimming pool at a French holiday village because they were wearing "burkinis".
The pair leapt into the water wearing the specialised bathing suits that covered their entire bodies, including a veil over the head.
The incident comes just ten days after French MPs voted to impose a full ban on wearing a burka.
The new law, which brands the garment "an insult to the country's values", means women will be fined or jailed for hiding their faces in public.
The women at the Rives des Corbieres holiday camp in Port Leucate, southern France, were told the rules stated only swimming costumes may be worn in the water.
They were asked to either change into conventional bikinis or one-piece costumes or leave the swimming pool.
Police were then called to the drama on Wednesday after the husband of one of the women threatened the pool's lifeguard with a bowling ball.
A holiday camp spokesman said: "The husbands became very irate that their wives were not allowed to swim with their bodies covered, and one of them threatened violence.
"Police were called and he eventually backed down. The two Muslim couples left the pool area and no charges were brought."
Regional government official Marie-Paule Bardeche said: "This is an issue stemming from the holiday centre's own regulations.
"They state men and women must wear ordinary swimwear for hygiene reasons. Men are not even allowed to wear long shorts in the water."
Last year a Muslim woman was banned from wearing a burkini at a public swimming pool also for hygiene reasons.
She later failed in her bid to sue the council in the Paris suburb for discrimination.
Police have this year also stopped and fined two women for wearing a burka while driving because the garb impaired their field of vision.
Two Muslim women were ordered out of a swimming pool at a French holiday village because they were wearing "burkinis".
The pair leapt into the water wearing the specialised bathing suits that covered their entire bodies, including a veil over the head.
The incident comes just ten days after French MPs voted to impose a full ban on wearing a burka.
The new law, which brands the garment "an insult to the country's values", means women will be fined or jailed for hiding their faces in public.
The women at the Rives des Corbieres holiday camp in Port Leucate, southern France, were told the rules stated only swimming costumes may be worn in the water.
They were asked to either change into conventional bikinis or one-piece costumes or leave the swimming pool.
Police were then called to the drama on Wednesday after the husband of one of the women threatened the pool's lifeguard with a bowling ball.
A holiday camp spokesman said: "The husbands became very irate that their wives were not allowed to swim with their bodies covered, and one of them threatened violence.
"Police were called and he eventually backed down. The two Muslim couples left the pool area and no charges were brought."
Regional government official Marie-Paule Bardeche said: "This is an issue stemming from the holiday centre's own regulations.
"They state men and women must wear ordinary swimwear for hygiene reasons. Men are not even allowed to wear long shorts in the water."
Last year a Muslim woman was banned from wearing a burkini at a public swimming pool also for hygiene reasons.
She later failed in her bid to sue the council in the Paris suburb for discrimination.
Police have this year also stopped and fined two women for wearing a burka while driving because the garb impaired their field of vision. - Daily Mail