October 5, 2008

How much to veil?

Filed under: Body Image,Gender,Politics — Tags: , , , , , , — Melanie @ 2:17 pm

Thanks, Ilona.

According to the BBC’s report, the niqab, or burqa, the full veil that reveals only the woman’s eyes, should be modified and only reveal one eye.  Apparently, two eyes are too revealing.

Sheikh Muhammad al-Habadan said showing both eyes encouraged women to use eye make-up to look seductive.

The question of how much of her face a woman should cover is a controversial topic in many Muslim societies.

The niqab is more common in Saudi Arabia and the Gulf, but women in much of the Muslim Middle East wear a headscarf which covers only their hair.

Sheikh Habadan, an ultra-conservative cleric who is said to have wide influence among religious Saudis, was answering questions on the Muslim satellite channel al-Majd.