Berlin court upholds school ban on demonstrative prayer, finding Muslim students disadvantaged

The ruling

The Berlin Administrative Court ruled on Thursday, 15 October 2026, that the Diesterweg-Gymnasium may prohibit the demonstrative practice of religious rites on school premises. The court dismissed a lawsuit brought by the Gesellschaft für Freiheitsrechte (GFF), a civil liberties association that had argued the school rule discriminates against Muslim pupils. The judgment is not yet final. The GFF told the Katholische Nachrichten-Agentur (KNA) that it plans to apply for leave to appeal. Dpa noted that an appeal must first be admitted before the Higher Administrative Court of Berlin-Brandenburg (OVG) can take up the matter.

1. 2023Current version of the school rules takes effect
2. Oct 15, 2026Berlin Administrative Court dismisses the GFF lawsuit

Why the court sided with the school

The judges accepted that the school faces real conflicts linked to religion, and they said the need to preserve school peace outweighs the individual right to religious freedom in this case. They conceded that the rule does treat Muslim pupils worse, because the obligatory Islamic prayer, performed five times a day including during school hours, is especially visible. Even so, the court found that the ban does not violate the Berlin anti-discrimination law in this concrete case, and that an orderly school day weighs more heavily for all pupils. The judges also stressed that the rule bans all demonstrative religious rites and extreme political acts without naming any single religion. The current version of the school rules has been in force since 2023, although the contested passage is older.

The school's account

The principal and his deputy described tensions tied to religious behaviour, mostly among Muslim pupils. The deputy head said pressure to conform rises sharply during Ramadan, and that some pupils tried to force religious practices on classmates. Girls were insulted for not wearing a headscarf or for dressing too lightly, and one seventh-grader once burst into a class announcing that everyone would fast from then on. Berliner Zeitung reported that the pupil body includes Shia and Sunni Muslims as well as Orthodox and Protestant Christians, and that Christian pupils rarely cause problems. Die Welt put the number of pupils at more than 600, while Berliner Zeitung gave 650, with both sources citing pupils from 47 countries. The school regulations were adopted by majority vote of a school conference made up of four pupils, four parents, four teachers and the principal.

The plaintiff's case

The GFF argued that the rule in practice applies only to Muslim pupils who perform the obligatory Islamic prayer. According to the association, those pupils would have to pray hidden in bushes, behind rubbish containers or in toilet rooms. The lawsuit was an association action (Verbandsklage) meant to have the court declare that discrimination exists. Soraia Da Costa Batista, the plaintiff's representative, said on the margins of the hearing:

The students want to be accepted at school with their faith.

The court did find a disadvantage for Muslim pupils, but it rejected the claim that the rule breaches the Berlin anti-discrimination law, so the finding of disadvantage did not lead to a finding of unlawful discrimination.

What happens next

The judgment is not final. Die Welt reported that an appeal has not been admitted so far, and dpa said the case can reach the OVG only once an appeal is admitted. The GFF has said it intends to apply for that admission. Until a higher court rules, the Berlin judgment stands and the ban remains in force at the Diesterweg-Gymnasium.