A MUSLIM woman faces being fined £8,000 for wearing a Burka in a region of Switzerland that last week banned them from being worn in public.

Nora Illi staged a protest against the new law in the town of Locarno while wearing a full-length headdress.

3 Protest ... Nora Illi hands out flyers in support of wearing Burkas Credit: Getty Images

Another protester, Rachid Nekkaz, has been rapped with a £180 penalty (CHF230).

The French-Algerian businessman has funded pro-Burka campaigns across the world.

Locarno sits in the canton of Ticino, a mainly Catholic Italian-speaking region that on July 1 brought in a ban on face-covering headgear.

3 Religious dress ... Burkas are becoming more popular in Europe Credit: Alamy

It was enacted after a 2013 referendum that saw 65% of people supporting a ban on burkas, according to Swiss Info.

The ban was passed through local government in November last year after the Swiss parliament found it didn't breach existing laws.

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Illi, a Muslim convert from Zurich and member of the Islamic Central Council of Switzerland, could be fined CHF10,000 for breaching the new law -- which some local officials are calling to be enacted nationwide.

Giorgio Ghiringhelli, who drew up the proposed ban, said it was time to push back against “Islamic fundamentalists”.

3 Fined ... New law banning face coverings came into force last week Credit: Getty Images

He said in November: “Those who want to integrate are welcome, irrespective of their religion, but those who rebuff our values and aim to build a parallel society based on religious laws, and want to place it over our society, are not welcome".

There are thought to be nearly half a million Muslims in Switzerland -- over 6% of the population.

Those who want to integrate are welcome, irrespective of their religion, but those who rebuff our values and aim to build a parallel society based on religious laws, and want to place it over our society, are not welcome Giorgio Ghiringhelli

The Swiss region isn't the only area to consider or enact a ban on face coverings in public.

France and Belgium brought in full bans in 2011, while the Dutch government in May backed a partial ban on public transport and in schools and hospitals.

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