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Since Iraqi forces recaptured this part of Mosul in November, the military has encouraged women not to wear veils that cover their faces because Islamic State militants are hiding among them dressed as women. Less than two weeks ago, the ban became official, and soldiers spread the word on the streets that burqas are no longer allowed.
Safana, 29, still wears a veil despite the ban, removing it only at military checkpoints, in Mosul, Iraq
IS militants in women’s veils, wearing suicide vests and moving among refugees fleeing the city, have been caught approaching Iraqi forces.The Iraqi forces also are searching for militants who have stopped fighting and are lying in wait as “sleeper cells.” “They wear women’s clothes outside and when people figure out they are men in hiding, they move to a different neighborhood,” said Hassan Bashar Abbass, a fighter in the Iraqi forces’ SWAT unit. “Just a few weeks ago we arrested two militants in veils over there,” he added, pointing across the street.
Cautious support
Many locals support the ban, saying it is a welcome safety precaution as suicide bombers continue to target eastern Mosul and IS militants flee Iraqi forces in western Mosul. When asked about the measure by VOA, most respond, “It’s better.” But some, like Dhoa, are more cautious, saying they abandoned their veils in support of Iraqi forces, which currently have strong positive relations with the Mosul population. If things go back to the way they were before IS, though, when the military and the population lived in deep distrust, some say dress codes dictating how they honor their faith will be as unwelcome as IS draconian rules. “It’s a personal private freedom to wear or to not wear a veil,” said Dhoa. “This interferes with that choice a little bit. But we also want to be safe. So it’s good and bad.”
Rebellion
One of Dhoa’s sisters-in-law, Farah, 26, cast off her burqa before the ban became formal, having worn it only to avoid punishment from IS. Like many Mosul residents, she now dislikes face veils because the militants liked them. “When we were liberated, the Iraqi army told us to take off the burqas. At first it was strange and some husbands didn’t approve,” she said. “But women encouraged each other in the first two months,” added her sister, Zainab, 40. “We would say, ‘Why are you still wearing this?’ ”
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The “anti-Sharia” protesters were organized by a group called ACT for America, a President Donald Trump-aligned organization that says it protects free speech and defends traditional American values. The Southern Poverty Law Center, which tracks hate groups, says ACT is the nation’s largest anti-Muslim group. According to a Washington Post report, about three dozen ACT protesters, some dressed in fatigues and carrying American flags, gathered in downtown New York City. Pax Hart, who organized the Manhattan rally, told a reporter that if someone feels unsafe walking around in a Muslim headscarf, “try being a conservative on a college campus.”
Counter demonstrators opposing a group who gathered across the street to protest against Islamic law, hold signs, June 10, 2017, in New York.
Among the people gathered at the anti-Sharia protest were Trump supporters; self-identified “Oath Keepers,” an anti-government group; and tidily dressed young men who identified themselves as members of the “alt-right,” a white nationalist movement. Across the street, a few hundred people gathered with banners reading “Fascists out of NYC.” Police officers and barricades stood between the two groups.
More than 20 cities
Similar faceoffs took place in more than 20 cities across the nation: Harrisburg, Pennsylvania; Chicago, Illinois; Austin, Texas; and San Bernardino, California, where in 2015 a husband and wife inspired by Islamic State killed 14 people and wounded 22 others in a shooting spree. “There are radicals out there,” an ACT for America supporter in San Bernardino, Denise Zamora, told a local television reporter. “People are saying that we’re against Muslims. No, Muslims are attacking other Muslims, and we’re bringing in these refugees that have the same ideologies.” So far, no violence has been reported at any of the demonstrations. But the Southern Poverty Law Center has noted that ACT for America rallies tend to attract a broad range of far-right extremists and anti-government activists.
Cathy Camper, of Tacoma, Wash., wears a stars-and-stripes cowboy hat as she protests against Islamic law at a rally, June 10, 2017, in Seattle, as counter-protesters demonstrate across the street.
The group canceled a rally scheduled for Saturday in Batesville, Arkansas, after it was revealed that the organizer was a prominent neo-Nazi, Billy Roper. In San Bernardino, police spokeswoman Eileen Hards told a reporter, “There’s an anti-Trump, a pro-Trump, anti-extremists, so there are a variety of messages here. “There are so many messages going on that I’m not sure who’s who,” Hards added.
Anti-Sharia Rallies Draw Counterprotesters in Cities Across the US
