Two families on a cycle ride in Toulon, southern France, came under violent attack after assailants hurled insults at two female partners for wearing shorts, according to prosecutors.

The attack, carried out by a group of youths from a housing estate in the Mediterranean port town, has sparked claims that parts of France are prey to an Islamist “morality police”.

Two couples with their three children and a friend were on a Sunday afternoon outing on bikes and roller blades when the “incredibly violent” attack took place, according to Var Matin, the local newspaper.

They were passing near the Cité des Oeillets, an estate in eastern Toulon, when a group of adolescents starting insulting the women of the group because of their shorts, including jibes such as: “Dirty whore, get naked.”

When their male partners sought to intervene, a larger group of youths arrived and a fight ensued, according to the Toulon prosecutor; Bernard Marchal.

“The male partners had simply asked them to respect their women and that sparked the fight. The three men were violently beaten on the face in front of their children. This was provocation of a sexual nature with the intention of forcing a reaction out of the men present,” said Mr Marchal.