Cairo and the Hijab

Egypt is still reeling from Farouq Hosni's remarks about the hijab! Another fake "crisis" facing the Islamic Umma, embodied by its women. One of the visitors to my blog reached me by typing in his/her search engine "Farouq Hosni homosexual." I doubt he found what he wanted.

Here's a pretty informative article (in Arabic) in Al Sharq al Awsat about the popularity of the hijab in Egyptian society and the attitude of the state (mainly State TV and the foreign ministry). The only problem is that the article at the beginning collapses the veil and the niqab: Qasem Amin and Huda Sha'rawi were against the niqab and the role it played in separating women from the public sphere. I find the comments of the readers also instructive. One mentions an omission in the article, which is the contribution of the Gulf culture to the popularity of the hijab in Egypt via Egyptians who migrated to work there. A similar influence is noticeable in Palestinian society.