Halal supermarket that refused to sell pork or alcohol ordered to close

A halal supermarket in France has been shut down after it refused to sell alcohol and pork.

The Good Price mini-market in the Paris suburb of Colombes failed to meet the conditions of its lease, which says the shop must act as a "general food store", the Court of Nanterre ruled.

The local authority, which controls the rent of the property, argued the surrounding community were not being properly served because the shop did not sell alcohol or charcuterie.

The grocer was first threatened with closure in August last year because of its near-exclusive halal range of goods.

Last year the mayor of Colombes Nicole Goueta visited the shop and urged store owner Soulemane Yalcin to stock a wider selection of produce so older residents did not have to travel outside the area to complete their shopping.

The grocer first opened in April 2015. It replaced an outlet of Franprix, a supermarket chain based in Paris.

But the store refused to broaden its range, with a lawyer for the business arguing that alcohol "is not part of the general diet".

This lead to the Court of Nanterre ruling on Monday (4 December) that the supermarket must close because it failed to meet "the needs of all inhabitants".

However, an unrepentant Yalcin told newspaper Le Parisen: "I do business, I look around and I target what can sell. The lease provides for general food and related activities. It depends on how you interpret the related activities."

He added that stores that sell alcohol face "security issues".

The store was also ordered to pay €4,000 (£3,500) to the local authority in legal costs.