Rabat – The Avicenne Muslim middle school in Nice has won another legal victory after the Marseille Administrative Court of Appeal confirmed the cancellation of a government order that sought to close the school.
The court ruled on Friday that the financial errors cited by authorities were not serious enough to justify shutting down the private school, Le Figaro reported.
“It’s the third victory in a row for Avicenne. We hope the harassment against this school will finally stop,” said lawyer Sefen Guez Guez, who represents the institution.
The Avicenne College, located in a disadvantaged area in northeast Nice, was founded in 2016. It currently welcomes around 130 students and follows the official national curriculum, adding 1.5 hours per week of Arabic language and 1.5 hours of Muslim ethics.
Background of the case
The closure order was signed in March 2024 by Hugues Moutouh, then-prefect of the Alpes-Maritimes, following an announcement made in February by the Education Minister at the time, Nicole Belloubet.
Authorities had raised concerns about the school’s sources of funding and alleged accounting irregularities. However, the quality of teaching was never questioned.
The case revolves around France’s 2021 law against separatism, which requires independent schools to clearly report where their funding comes from. The Avicenne Association, which manages the school and is linked to the Union of Muslims of the Alpes-Maritimes (UMAM), initially struggled to provide complete information, according to French media.
Officials also questioned certain financial transactions, including loans that were later turned into donations totaling €476,000, and another case where the school lent money to one of its donors.
Court says closure was too harsh
Both the Nice Administrative Court and now the Marseille Court of Appeal found the prefect’s decision to permanently close the school to be “disproportionate.” The judges said the financial mistakes were minor and that the prefect could have chosen a temporary closure instead.
The school says it has been making efforts to meet all transparency requirements. For years, it has also been asking to become a “contracted” school, meaning it would receive public funding and be placed under closer state supervision, but its request has not been approved.
Avicenne will continue to operate for now, as the court’s latest ruling confirms it can remain open.
The attempted closure of the school sparked debate among the public and the local community. Supporters of the school, including parents and its legal team, have described the authorities’ actions as harassment and disproportionate, suggesting that the school may have been singled out because it is a Muslim institution.
Some commentators have raised concerns that strict enforcement of France’s 2021 law against separatism is being applied more heavily to Muslim schools, while the school itself insists it has always followed educational standards and strives to meet transparency requirements.
