A quote from the press agency Ansamed, 5 September 2008

A judge from Rennes, in western France, agreed to postpone a trial due to the Ramadan, the sacred month of Islam, despite the protests of the lawyers for the civil parties. The trial had to begin on September 16 at the criminal court of Ille-et-Vilaine. The defendant is a Muslim accused of a series of abductions committed between 2000 and 2001 in Saint Malo and Rennes. The postponement was requested by the defendant's counsels. "The fast obligations of the Ramadan are strict and often those who observe them are in a state of severe weakness," lawyer Yann Choucq explained. The trial was postponed for January 19.