Story highlights
- France's Council of State rules that mayors can't can burkinis
- Cities' burkini bans at beaches were met with strong reaction; many staged protests
(CNN)When a photograph emerged showing armed police forcing a woman at a Nice beach to remove some clothing because of a controversial burkini ban this week, it was met by some with outrage.
On Friday, one town's ban was suspended when the French Council of State ruled that mayors do not have the right to ban burkinis. The ruling could affect the more than 30 other French towns that have such bans.
The burkini -- a full length swimsuit favored by many Muslim women -- covers the whole body, except for the face, hands and feet. One community that had banned them was Nice, where a truck barreled into a crowd celebrating Bastille Day, killing more than 80 people.
Police patrolling the promenade des anglais beach in Nice fined a woman for wearing a burkini.
The bans sparked an intense reaction among many who decided to stage protests across cities in Europe.
Across social media, the hashtag #BurkiniBan was widely shared. Reaction to Friday's court ruling was mixed but mostly in support of the suspension.
"It is very powerful" one tweeter commented on the suspension ruling.
Some wondered why anyone would be afraid of pieces of cloth.
Others argued that maybe men should consider what THEY deem to be suitable to wear in public places, such as the beach.
It is not right that women should even need validation from a court in their choice of clothing, one tweeter argued.
"We got France to do the right thing," one tweeter commented, suggesting that the ruling could be a springboard to change other standpoints elsewhere.
In response to the decision to suspend the burkini ban, John Dalhuisen, Amnesty International's Europe director, said: "By overturning a discriminatory ban that is fueled by and is fueling prejudice and intolerance, today's decision has drawn an important line in the sand."
