Police in Somalia ban and burn niqabs amid jihadist disguise fears

Somali police have burned hundreds of women’s niqabs because of fears jihadists could use the garments to carry out terror attacks.

Officers in the southern city of Kismayo have been stopping women in the streets and forcing them to remove the garments, which cover the whole body and face except for the eyes. Those wearing the niqabs could also face jail or a fine.

Warsame Ahmed Gelle, the local police chief, told state TV that the crackdown had been triggered by concerns jihadists could conceal their identities in order to carry out attacks.

He said: “In Jubbaland and in the entirety of Somalia, we are at war with the terrorist group who cover their faces and disguise themselves as women to carry out attacks, and for that reason we have banned the niqab.”

The police campaign culminated with the burning of hundreds of niqabs.

In Somalia, the al Qaeda-linked al-Shabab group has fought the United Nations-backed government for nearly 20 years, and the insurgents control large parts of the south and central regions.

A suicide bombing killed dozens last week at a popular beachfront location in Mogadishu, the capital.

Somalia is 99 per cent Muslim according to government statistics. Many Somali women choose to cover their hair only rather than their face and body, but the niqab has grown in popularity in recent years.

Jubbaland state first imposed a niqab ban in 2013, though it was rarely enforced.

Al-Shabab, which controls much of Jubbaland around Kismayo, condemned the new crackdown, saying it was against Islamic law.

The group’s Radio Andalus called it an intensification of the war on Islam and Islamic symbols, while its website said the ban was aimed at fighting Islam and Muslim women.

Source » msn.com