France expels Egyptian-born Swiss imam from country

This file photo taken on April 14, 2007 shows Hani Ramadan, the director of the Islamic Center in Geneva, delivering a speech during the annual meeting of Muslims in France, in Le Bourget, north of Paris. (AFP)

PARIS: An Egyptian-born Swiss Muslim cleric was expelled from France for past remarks and behavior that posed a serious threat to public order, the French Interior Ministry said in a statement.
Hani Ramadan was arrested in Colmar, in northeastern France, where he was expected to take part in a conference.
“Interior Minister Matthias Fekl, ordered Hani Ramadan to be returned to Switzerland this evening,” the statement said.
Ramadan is known to have spoken and behaved in a way that posed a serious threat to public order, it said.
France is under heightened alert following a spate of attacks by militants since January 2015 that have killed more than 230 people. The threat posed by militants is a hot button in the French April-May presidential election.