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On Tuesday the lower house of the French parliament voted overwhelming to ban face veils in public. The punishment will be a fine or citizenship classes. The bill will still have to pass the upper house in September. While there is outrage among Muslims and humans rights groups, more than 80 percent of French citizens support the bill.

We’re analyzing coverage from: Al Jazeera, CNN, The Telegraph, The Los Angeles Times and The Sunday Times.

A member of the French Parliament tells Al Jazeera he fully supports the ban because the full-faced veils are a security risk.

Jacques Myard: “Few people said you are going to victimize a minority. I’m sorry, I am the victim because those people refuse me so I can see their face you see and I think this is very dangerous.”

CNN reports that most of Western Europe is behind the ban and want similar ones.

“According to a Pew Global Attitudes Project survey released yesterday, support for a ban ... is widespread across Europe, with strong majorities in Spain (59 percent), Britain (62 percent), Germany (71 percent) and France (82 percent).”

But one woman tells The Telegraph if it is a security issue, there are alternatives that are not being explored.

“It’s everyone’s right to do what they want to do. And as for the burka if they have problems with it they should make like maybe a lady police to see the identification. That’s what happens in the Arab world. We also have problems from the burka for identification.”

Alison Culliford, a reporter for The Los Angeles Times, points out that the French were careful with their language.

“Though the wording of the law is careful not to single out Muslims, it is widely seen as a move to clamp down on Islamic extremism. Several exceptions are noted, such as masks for health reasons, sports, carnivals and festivals.”

With the controversial ban affecting less then 2000 people in France, Charles Bremmer, a writer for UK’s The Sunday Times says that this is all a political ploy by President Sarkozy.

“The popular campaign for an ‘anti-burka law’, as it is known, is helping Mr Sarkozy after a series of political blunders in recent months that have robbed him of his aura of invincibility. … The critics see this as a crude play for votes before the regional council elections in March.”

So what do you think about the ban? Is it a human rights issue or a national security issue?

Writer: Kelly Chase

Producer: Newsy Staff