VIENNA: Austrian lawmakers on Thursday voted by a large majority in favor of a law banning headscarves in schools for girls under 14, a move rights groups and experts say is discriminatory and could deepen societal division. Austria’s conservative-led government — under pressure with anti-immigration sentiment is running high — proposed the ban earlier this year, arguing it is aimed at protecting girls “from oppression.” In 2019 the country introduced a ban on headscarves in primary schools, but the constitutional court struck it down.

A similar ban for girls under 10 was struck down by the Constitutional Court for specifically targeting Muslims.

VIENNA: Austrian lawmakers on Thursday voted by a large majority in favor of a law banning headscarves in schools for girls under 14, a move rights groups and experts say is…