CAIRO: A Saudi Sheikh recently issued a fatwa stating that women who wear the niqab (full face veil) are only allowed to show one eye, covering the other along with the rest of their bodies.
Sheikh Mohamed Al-Habdan issued that decree during his appearance on Al-Majd satellite channel.
“When Ibn Abbas [known for his knowledge and his interpretations of the Quran and the Prophet’s sayings] was reading the holy Quranic verse that mentions the veil, he covered his face and one eye, while showed a little of his other eye and said: this is the face veil, just enough to be able to see the way,” Al-Habdan said.
He went on to urge Muslim women who wear the niqab to adjust it so that it only shows one of their eyes, adding that showing both eyes is “Islamically incorrect.”
However, controversial fatwas are nothing new to Al-Habdan. He had also issued another fatwa forbidding Muslim women from going out without a mehrem — a male guardian, usually the husband or a relative who is religiously banned from marrying that woman (father, brother, son, maternal or paternal uncle, grandfather or nephew).
Al-Majd satellite channel was once before the platform for another controversial fatwa by Sheikh Saleh El-Lheidan, chief of the Saudi’s Supreme Judiciary Council, against watching the Olympics and Turkish soap operas.
El-Lheidan said the Olympics includes “obscene scenes” and “nothing made Satan happier than seeing females athletes dressed in skimpy outfits.”
As for the Turkish soap operas, El-Lheidan commented on the scenes that show bedrooms or are shot in bedrooms.
He went further to issue another fatwa that permits the killing of the owners of satellite TV stations who show “immoral” content.
“I advise the owners of the shameless satellite stations who distribute programs promoting impudence, insolence and silly humor,” said El-Lheidan. “I warn them, they’re wasting people’s time and corrupting them. If they don’t heed our call, their killing could be permissible.”
The holy month of Ramadan has seen its share of controversial fatwas such as one deeming Mickey Mouse “an agent of Satan.”
Saudi Sheikh Muhammad Munajid reportedly said that “both household mice and their cartoon counterparts must be killed.”
