A last-minute court decision on Saturday cleared the way for a major Muslim event in northern Paris after police had moved to prohibit it.
The administrative court overturned the government decree just two hours before the planned 14:00 local start, ruling that the evidence presented by police did not prove an imminent risk to public order.
Paris police had argued the four-day Annual Encounter of Muslims of France posed a security threat, saying it could attract terrorist attacks, far-right disruption or foreign interference.
They also warned the event might stretch police resources.
Organisers — the Muslims of France (MF) association — challenged the ban with an emergency injunction, saying blocking the meeting would violate basic freedoms.
The court noted organisers had offered extra security and found no clear indication of likely counter-demonstrations.
The gathering, part conference and part trade fair, last took place in 2019 and historically drew tens of thousands from across Europe.
MF is the country’s largest Muslim organisation; critics link it to the international Muslim Brotherhood, an allegation the group denies.
The decision comes as Paris prepares a new "anti-separatism" law aimed largely at Muslim institutions seen as promoting ideas at odds with republican values.
Interior Minister Laurent Nunez said the measure would widen authorities’ powers over childcare, publications and groups the state cannot currently reach.
At the injunction hearing MF’s lawyer, Sefen Guez Guez, called the ban a clear breach of assembly rights and accused the government of using the move to bolster its new law.
A police lawyer countered that the measure was intended only to preserve public order and was not directed against Islam.
With the ban reversed, the four-day meeting went ahead as planned, marking a tense moment in France’s ongoing debate over security, integration and the limits of public freedoms.
