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Quebec justice minister explains how ‘niqab ban’ would be applied after widespread criticism

MONTREAL—Quebec’s controversial religious neutrality law would require Muslim women to show their veiled faces briefly and only when interacting directly with employees to access public services, the province’s justice minister said Tuesday.

Stéphanie Vallée took the unusual step of explaining how the law would be applied in response to the confusion and widespread condemnation that has reined since the government bill was adopted last week in the Quebec legislature.

She said veiled individuals would have to remove their niqab — a religious face covering with only two eye holes — when verification of photo identification by a government agent is required to access public transport, to check out library books, or to register at a medical clinic or hospital.