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Morocco's interior ministry is reportedly cracking down on terrorism by banning sale and production of burqa in the country. The ministry has reacted to several reports of terrorists wearing burqas to hide themselves in public and carry out attacks.

These European countries have now banned the burqa

Burqa or "niqab" is a long black garment worn by women of Muslim faith, which covers a person from head to toe, leaving small gaps for the eyes. Although there has been no official announcement from the government, some unnamed officials from the interior ministry said the step has been taken because of "security concerns."

Letters announcing the ban were released on Monday (January 9) asking businesses to shut the production of the garment and get rid of the current stock within 48 hours. It is still not clear whether the government intends to impose an outright ban on burqa. An interior ministry official confirmed the ban to Le360 news site saying: "We have taken the step of completely banning the import, manufacture and marketing of this garment in all the cities and towns of the kingdom...Bandits have repeatedly used this garment to perpetrate their crimes."

Other headscarves, however, are still permitted in the country like the hijab, which just covers the head of a person and not the whole face.

Another local news outlet said the interior ministry officials carried out "awareness-raising campaigns with traders to inform them of this new decision" in the commercial districts of Casablanca, the largest city of the country.

Government officials in Morocco have reportedly taken the step days after the country's media had claimed that the United States' Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) had alerted the authorities of Nice Berlin-style terror attacks. The CIA had also said that almost 30 per cent of Islamic States militants had fled Iraq and Syria to their home countries.

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