When was the burial space at Fourneaux Cemetery set aside?

Space for approximately 40 Muslim burials was set aside at Fourneaux Cemetery in La Ferté-Bernard in 2021; the arrangement allowed graves to face Mecca.

Muslim burial requests in France: cemetery space dispute in Sarthe

As arrangements are made to address Muslim families’ burial requests in France’s Sarthe region, a dispute continues over expanding cemetery space in Sablé-sur-Sarthe.

General News

Mirat Haber

13/11/2026 02:20

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Municipalities in France’s Sarthe region are considering Muslim families’ requests to bury relatives according to their religious traditions alongside cemetery capacity. In Sablé-sur-Sarthe, the council and community representatives are at odds over expanding the Muslim burial section, while arrangements in La Ferté-Bernard allow graves to face Mecca.

Key points about burial requests

Families’ requests include graves facing Mecca and people of the same faith being buried close together.
In 2021, space for approximately 40 burials was set aside at Fourneaux Cemetery in La Ferté-Bernard.
Mayors have the authority to decide whether graves of people of the same faith can be grouped together in cemeteries.

Calls for expansion continue in Sablé-sur-Sarthe

An Anadolu Agency report citing the French local newspaper Ouest-France examined how the municipalities of Le Mans, La Ferté-Bernard, Sablé-sur-Sarthe and Solesmes handle Muslim burial requests. It reported that councils were considering both families’ expectations concerning religious traditions and existing cemetery capacity.

The dispute in Sablé-sur-Sarthe centres on expanding the Muslim burial section. Representatives of the town’s Islamic Cultural Centre expressed dissatisfaction over the dispute with the council on this issue.

The council says it cannot meet all the requests, while organisations representing the Muslim community continue to call for the section to be expanded. The parties’ statements thus reflect differing positions on enlarging the existing space.

What changes for families arranging to bury their relatives?

For families, the practical implications of these arrangements concern the direction a grave faces and its location within the cemetery. The space set aside at Fourneaux Cemetery in La Ferté-Bernard made it possible for Muslim graves to face Mecca. This arrangement shows that a request concerning religious traditions can be accommodated within a municipal cemetery.

Under what conditions can French cemeteries provide faith-based sections?

Municipalities in France can group the graves of people of the same faith together. However, this must not compromise the cemetery’s neutrality, the section must not be physically separated from other areas, and the cemetery must remain open to burials of people of all faiths. Mayors decide whether to make such arrangements.

The legal framework cited in the report is based on an Interior Ministry response published by France’s National Assembly on 28 July 2026. The response states that graves of people of the same faith may be grouped together in practice, while emphasising that cemeteries are subject to the principles of secularism and neutrality in public services.

Questions about burial arrangements

Which municipalities in Sarthe were covered in the report?

The report citing Ouest-France examined how the municipalities of Le Mans, La Ferté-Bernard, Sablé-sur-Sarthe and Solesmes handle Muslim burial requests.

When were the arrangements at Fourneaux Cemetery introduced?

In 2021, space for approximately 40 Muslim burials was set aside at Fourneaux Cemetery in La Ferté-Bernard; the arrangement allowed graves to face Mecca.