Virginia county closes schools after controversial Islam homework

Schools in Augusta County, Virginia, were shut down as a safety precaution on Friday after a homework assignment on Islam prompted an angry backlash from parents, CNN reported.

County school officials said there was no specific threat of harm, but Thursday afternoon extracurricular activities were canceled as well, the cable news channel reported.

The assignment, handed out to Riverheads High School in Staunton, was part of a broader unit on major world religions and asked students to copy Islamic religious calligraphy, CNN reported.

(Reporting by Megan Cassella; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama)