GARDEN CITY, Kansas (AP) - Muslim leaders in southwest Kansas are considering opening a private cemetery that would serve members of their faith.
Abdulkadir Mohamed, vice president of Somalis of Southwest Kansas, says that in recent years, Muslims from southwest Kansas have been buried in a Wichita cemetery that better serves the religion's requirements.
A growing number of Muslims, many from Somalia and Burma, have settled in southwest Kansas, most to work in four meatpacking plants within a 70-mile radius of Dodge City and Liberal. An estimated 500 Muslims live in Garden City.
Muslim leaders asked Garden City in June to set aside a segment of Valley View Cemetery for members of their faith.
The Garden City Telegram reports that City Commissioner Nancy Harness told Muslim leaders on Saturday that the city would not agree to segregate the cemetery.