French police arrest two veiled women in Paris

Paris police on Monday arrested two veiled women and several other people protesting in front of Notre Dame cathedral against France's new ban on wearing full-face niqab veils in public

An AFP journalist at the scene said the arrests came after police moved in to break up the protest which had not been authorised.

"Today was not about arresting people because of wearing the veil. It was for not having respected the requirement to declare a demonstration," said police spokesman Alexis Marsan.

Two women in niqabs, a woman wearing an Islamic headscarf that does not cover the face and a demonstration organiser were arrested, Marsan said.

In another protest, Rachid Nekkaz from the Don't Touch My Constitution activist group and "a female friend wearing the niqab" were arrested by police in front of President Nicolas Sarkozy's Elysee Palace, he told AFP.

"We wanted to be fined for wearing the niqab, but the police didn't want to issue a fine," Nekkaz told AFP by telephone.

On Saturday police arrested 59 people, including 19 veiled women, who turned up for a banned protest in Paris against the draconian new law, the first of its kind to be enforced in Europe.