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| Swiss minaret ban 'security risk' | Swiss minaret ban 'security risk' |
| (41 minutes later) | |
| A decision by Swiss voters to ban the construction of minarets poses a risk to Switzerland's security, the country's foreign minister says. | A decision by Swiss voters to ban the construction of minarets poses a risk to Switzerland's security, the country's foreign minister says. |
| Micheline Calmy-Rey said the Swiss government was "very concerned" about the ban, adopted by voters on Sunday. | Micheline Calmy-Rey said the Swiss government was "very concerned" about the ban, adopted by voters on Sunday. |
| "Each limitation on the co-existence of different cultures and religions also endangers our security," she told the European security body, the OSCE. | "Each limitation on the co-existence of different cultures and religions also endangers our security," she told the European security body, the OSCE. |
| A top UN official has called the ban "clearly discriminatory". | A top UN official has called the ban "clearly discriminatory". |
| Navi Pillay, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, said the ban was "deeply divisive" and at odds with Switzerland's international legal obligations. | |
| 'Extremism' risk | |
| More than 57.5% of Swiss voters and 22 out of 26 cantons - or provinces - voted in favour of the ban on Sunday. | |
| The proposal had been put forward by the Swiss People's Party (SVP), the largest party in parliament, which said minarets were a sign of Islamisation. | |
| Religious leaders across the world - including the Vatican and Muslim figureheads - have criticised the minaret ban as a blow to religious freedom. | |
| But European right-wing groups welcomed the result, calling for other countries to take similar measures. | |
| "Provocation risks triggering other provocation and risks inflaming extremism," Mrs Calmy-Rey said at the OSCE meeting in Athens. | |
| Sunday's referendum has forced the government to declare illegal the building of any new minarets, but Mrs Calmy-Rey said Muslims could still build new mosques and continue to worship in the country. | |
| "Swiss Muslims are well integrated and will continue to attend the 200 mosques in the country," she said. | |
| She said if an appeal against the referendum was lodged at the European Court of Human Rights, it would be up to the court to decide on its legality. |