Egypt News

In a parliamentary address, Bakri said the niqab decision has sparked furor in society and will led to confusion. It will also result in significant social problems and will evict hundreds of female expatriates from the student dormitories, who cannot afford private housing due to limited finances.

Bakri also questioned Hilal's motives for adopting the decision, noting that no similar measures were taken against students who dress profligately and violate social and religious principles. He added that the decision should be immediately revoked, and called for an urgent meeting of parliament's religious affairs and education committees to discuss the issue in the presence of the cabinet minister, the sheikh of al-Azhar and the minister of higher education.

Brotherhood Deputy el-Sayed Askar asked the Prime Minister about the real reasons behind the government's decision. "Has the government already resolved the problems of unemployment, health, education and private tutoring, rice husks, and drinking water and was only left with the problem of the Muslim woman's niqab?" Askar wondered, pointing out that the Religious Affairs Committee of the People's Assembly had previously issued a recommendation which said banning the niqab was not permitted, and it is the women's choice to wear it or not.

He went on to say, "Don't the officials of the Islamic government of Egypt know that wearing the veil is an obligation, and that scholars differ on the niqab? Some have said it is an obligation, others that it is a tradition, and yet others consider it a virtue. This is what a fatwa by Dar al-Ifta said."

Meanwhile, leaders of a well-known Sunni group denounced the decision by the sheikh of al-Azhar to ban the niqab within al-Azhar's educational institutions, saying the decision is illegal and antireligious.

Religious leaders should not make a girl abandon a symbol of virtue, which is her choosing, said Sheikh Ahmed Youssef, secretary general of el-Sunna el-Muhamadiyya, adding, "Instead of fighting the women in the niqab, they should fight the women who do not wear the veil." He also suggested he would sue the sheikh of al-Azhar if the decision was not implemented.

The Sawasya Center for Human Rights, lawyers and MPs from the Muslim Brother and female students at al-Azhar University filed two proceedings with the State Council against the sheikh of al-Azhar and the Minister of Higher Education Hani Helal, as well as Dr. Hossam Kamel, president of Cairo University. The lawsuit calls for the nullification of the decision banning the niqab at universities, arguing that the decision is illegal and unconstitutional. The constitution stipulates that personal freedom is a normal right and encroachment on this right is a crime punishable by law, stressed the plaintiffs.

EGYPT NEWS

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