Parents Petition to Defend Teacher in Andorran School Scarf Dispute

A group of parents at the French School in Sant Julià de Lòria has delivered a petition with 133 signatures to school directors, backing a teacher at the centre of a dispute with an educational assistant over her Palestinian keffiyeh scarf.

The conflict, which unfolded last week in school corridors and was witnessed by some primary pupils, began when the teacher challenged the scarf as an unsuitable political emblem tied to armed struggle or Hamas. The assistant, hired by the Fundació Privada Nostra Senyora de Meritxell to support operations at the school, alleged racism and "Zionist" comments from him. She had raised a prior similar grievance with French education authorities—also involving criticism of her wearing a Morocco national team shirt—without outcome.

Tensions boiled over in a verbal confrontation between the two adults, with raised voices audible to children on at least one occasion. The assistant shared videos of her claims on social media, drawing initial media attention before deleting them. She expressed surprise at the backlash's scale.

Parents defending the teacher, who shared an audio recap of events, accused her of insulting him during his absence with terms like "this guy is stupid" and "this fucking racist piece of shit" in front of pupils. The petition highlights his professionalism, dismisses bias claims, and calls for upholding the school's secular neutrality, citing Andorra's safety rules and the Franco-Andorran Education Agreement to shield him and restore calm.

The Meritxell foundation has launched an internal probe, collecting statements from all involved to establish facts before any decisions. As a precaution, it has reassigned the young assistant away from the school indefinitely, framing the matter as an internal issue. The foundation has stayed silent publicly beyond this step.

French education delegation staff have held multiple recent meetings with school leaders, the foundation, and the assistant. Other educational assistants in Sant Julià facilities reiterated she is not part of their ministry roster but a specialised foundation employee, voicing worries about the fallout on their roles.

Local families report earlier frictions with the assistant, and the episode continues to stir community debate. No further actions have been taken.