France’s Le Pen renews anti-Islam remarks ahead of election

PARIS – With just three weeks before the first round of France’s presidential election, far-right candidate Marine Le Pen is working to galvanize voters with the anti-Islam rhetoric that is one of her trademarks.

Le Pen addressed thousands of supporters on Sunday in the southwest French city of Bordeaux, where she vowed to “uncompromisingly fight Islamist fundamentalism which seeks to impose its oppressive rules in our country.”

She also criticized the headscarves that some Muslim women wear, saying “girls in France should be able to dress as they wish” and “shouldn’t be forced to bury themselves under clothes of another age.”

Polls suggest Le Pen is one of the top contenders in the election’s first round on April 23, but would lose in the May 7 runoff.