By Yusuf Ozcan

PARIS (AA): A poll said on Wednesday that 42% of Muslims in France were harassed at least once in their lives.

The survey published by the French Public Opinion Institute (IFOP) said most racial harassment occurred during police controls, job applications and house rentals.

60% of Muslim women who wear headscarf said they were harassed at least once, while this figure was 44% for non-headscarf-wearing Muslim women.

24% of Muslims who participated in the survey said they were verbally attacked and this rate was 9% for non-Muslims.

Also, 37% of the headscarf-wearing Muslim women said they were insulted.

Last month, French far-right lawmaker Julien Odoul had requested from a Muslim woman to take off her veil in a meeting in eastern Besancon and attacked her verbally.

After the incident, the issue sparked discussions and statements targeting Muslims.

Last week, an 84-year-old man was arrested after he shot and wounded two people seriously while they were praying at a mosque in the southern French city of Bayonne.

* Writing by Fatih Hafiz Mehmet in Ankara

[Photo: Map of France. Creative Commons]