Tunis restricts Islamic niqabs

Prime Minister Youssef Chahed has banned the niqab Muslim face covering for women in Tunisian Government offices ‘for security reasons’. Chahed signed a government circular ‘banning access to public administrations and institutions to anyone with their face covered'. A report on the News24 site notes that the ban on the niqab, which covers the entire face apart from the eyes, comes at a time of heightened security following a 27 June double suicide bombing in Tunis that left two dead and seven wounded. The niqab and other outward shows of Islamic devotion were not tolerated under the regime of long-time autocrat Zine El Abidine Ben Ali but have made a comeback since he was toppled in 2011.