Voters in Switzerland approved a referendum Sunday to ban the building of new minarets on mosques. Nearly 58% of voters, and all but four of the country's 26 cantons, supported the initiative, with support for the ban reaching 70% in some regions.
    The Higher Council of Ulema, chaired by HM King Mohammed VI, "condemns this approach" and sees it as a "form of extremism and exclusion," says the Council in a statement.
    The Council, which expresses astonishment at this Swiss position, considers it "contrary to the civilized image that Muslims have of Switzerland" and hopes that the wise men of this country adopt an approach that would annul the ban.