Algeria has refused to allow the family of a French gunman accused of killing seven people to bury the man in the family's native Algeria.

A Muslim leader in France said Thursday that Algerian authorities denied the request from Mohamed Merah's family because of security concerns. He said Merah will instead be buried in a cemetery near Toulouse, France, on Thursday.

Earlier this month, Merah was killed in a barrage of gunfire, following a more than 30-hour standoff with police at his home in Toulouse.

The gunman who authorities say claimed links to al-Qaida had admitted to killing three soldiers, three Jewish school children and a rabbi.

The incident raised the French government's concerns about Muslim extremists. France on Thursday announced it had banned several international Muslim clerics from entering the country for an Islamic conference next month.