Al-Qaeda Mag Issues Niqab Beauty Tips

Those al-Qaedians: Always thinking of the little lady. Now a new 33-page magazine just for women issued by al-Qaeda has some fashion tips for wearing the head-to-toe niqab. A machine gun is apparently a key accessory, highlighted on the cover of the glossy Al-Shamikha ("Majestic Woman"). And don't forget what useful protection a veil is against the sun's harmful rays. The best way to protect the complexion? "Stay inside with your face covered," advises the mag.

Al-Shamikha mixes its beauty, fashion and lifestyle tips ("Marrying a Mujahedeen") with information on waging jihad. "The nation of Islam needs women who know the truth about their religion, and about the battle and its dimensions, and know what is expected of them," note the editors. The magazine's launch comes 9 months after al-Qaeda's first English language glossy, Inspire, aimed at maintaining and recruiting members in the West, notes the Independent. (More niqab stories.)