Female German minister REFUSES to wear a hijab during visit to Saudi Arabia

A German minister has refused to wear a hijab during a visit to Saudi Arabia – saying women should have the same right to choose their clothing as men.

Defence Minister Ursula von der Leyen’s stand came a week after Chancellor Angela Merkel called for the burka to be banned.

Von der Leyen was in Riyadh to meet Saudi deputy crown prince  Salman Al-Saud, where she voiced her annoyance at the expectation that women cover up.

But she shunned traditional Saudi attire, opting instead for a dark blue suit.

Her decision sparked anger on Twitter in Saudi Arabia, Al Bawaba reported.

Speaking of her refusal to wear full-length robes, known as the abaya, Das Bild reports, she said: ‘No woman in my delegation has to wear the Abaya.

‘The right to choose your own clothing is a right shared by men and women alike. It annoys me, when women women are to be pushed into the Abaya.’

The newspaper reported that although servants looked ‘astonished’ at the sight of the German minister in traditional dress, it did not spark any protests.

Von der Leyen followed the example set by US First Lady Michelle Obama, who was condemned in Saudi Arabia when she went bare-headed on a visit with her husband last year.

Saudi Arabia has been criticised for its attitude to women, who are not allowed to hold driving licenses.

Last week Angela Merkel called for a burka ban, saying the ‘full veil is not appropriate’ in Germany.

The German chancellor told her conservative CDU party conference that wearing the burka should be outlawed ‘wherever that is legally possible’.

Merkel said she would back a nationwide ban just months after revealing that she believed the burka was a barrier to Muslim women becoming integrated into German society.