Sharia law

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Guardian System Has Saudi Women 'Perpetual Minors'

Doing almost anything requires male consent in kingdom, report finds

(Newser) - Women in Saudi Arabia need to gain a male guardian’s consent to do almost anything, living as “perpetual minors,” the Telegraph reports. Research by Human Rights Watch found that male permission is needed to go to a doctor, travel, and even get dressed. In addition, strict segregation...

Bravo to Harvard for Women-Only Gym Hours
Bravo to Harvard for Women-Only Gym Hours
OPINION
Mar 26, 2008 7:44 PM CDT

Bravo to Harvard for Women-Only Gym Hours

Islam-friendly policy fits 'regime of reasonable accommodation'

(Newser) - Harvard was right to close a gym to men for six hours each week so Muslim women can exercise in comfort, Ruth Marcus writes in the Washington Post. Bloggers might be charging “Sharia at Harvard” and some students might be exercised about another decision to broadcast calls to prayer...

In Saudi Arabia, a Hotel for Women

Men-free Luthan Hotel 'meeting a very big demand' in conservative Muslim kingdom

(Newser) - Saudi Arabia’s first hotel catering exclusively to women—right down to its plush spa—opened this week in Riyadh, the Independent reports. The conservative kingdom enforces strict Islamic segregation of sexes in public, but women can stay at the Luthan Hotel without a male guardian—nor any men on...

Tehran's Top Cop Nabbed in Brothel
Tehran's Top Cop Nabbed
in Brothel
Mar 12, 2008 4:17 PM CDT

Tehran's Top Cop Nabbed in Brothel

Man charged with 'moralizing' Iran capital caught with prostitutes

(Newser) - The man in charge of "moralizing" Iran's capital city is out of a job after being arrested during a raid on a Tehran brothel, Ynetnews reports. Police chief Reza Zarei, who had led crackdowns on women who disobeyed strict Islamic dress codes, was caught naked with six prostitutes in...

Unmarried, Frustrated, and Turning to Islam

More in Middle East heal economic pains with religious fervor

(Newser) - Facing a feeble job market, many Middle Eastern youths can't afford pricey marriages—and end up single, frustrated, and devoted to Islam, the New York Times reports. Several countries are trying to stem the religious tide by funding weddings, but thousands are left unmarried and isolated. “People don’t...

Fury After Head of Anglicans Condones Sharia in UK

Archbishop calls Islamic law 'inevitable'

(Newser) - The Archbishop of Canterbury made the cover of almost every British newspaper today after condoning the application of sharia law in Muslim communities in Britain. Although Rowan Williams rejected the extreme versions of sharia practiced in parts of the Muslim world, he said in a lecture last night that the...

Turkey to Lift Head Scarf Ban at Universities

Agreement alarms secular elite, which fears Islamist rule

(Newser) - Turkey is expected to do away with a 2-decade-old ban on women wearing head scarves at the nation’s universities as early as next week. The prospect alarms the country’s secular elite, who see the country on a slippery slope to Islamist rule, Der Spiegel reports. “The logic...

Sudan Will Jail, Deport Teddy Bear Teacher
Sudan Will Jail, Deport Teddy Bear Teacher
UPDATED
Nov 29, 2007 1:08 PM CST

Sudan Will Jail, Deport Teddy Bear Teacher

Gibbons gets 15 days and the boot for bear named 'Muhammad'

(Newser) - A Sudanese court sentenced British schoolteacher Gillian Gibbons to 15 days in prison and deportation from Sudan for inciting religious hatred by allowing her students to name a class teddy bear Muhammad, the Guardian reports. The sentence represented something of a success for British officials, who had said they would...

British Teacher Charged in Teddy Bear Flap

Jail, lashes could be punishment for 'insult to Islam' in Sudan

(Newser) - The British teacher held in Sudan for committing blasphemy by naming a teddy bear “Muhammed” has been charged with insulting religion, inciting hatred and showing contempt for religious beliefs, the BBC reports. The UK Foreign Secretary said he would summon the Sudanese ambassador; Prime Minister Gordon Brown said he...

Teacher Held for Teddy Bear Blasphemy

Briton in Sudan faces 40 lashes over bear named 'Mohammed'

(Newser) - A UK teacher in Sudan may get 40 lashes and a 6-month sentence over a teddy bear named "Mohammed," the Telegraph reports. Sudanese cops nabbed Gillian Gibbons yesterday for blasphemy after she let her elementary school kids name the bear after Islam's prophet. School director Robert Boulos, who...

Saudi Rulers: Rape Victim Caused Crime

Had 'illegal affair,' failed to tell fiancé about attacks

(Newser) - Under international fire for sentencing a gang-rape victim to 200 lashes, the Saudi government yesterday said the woman violated Islamic law and caused the crime to take place by having an "illegitimate relationship" with a man not her husband. The rapists allegedly found the woman "in a compromising...

Saudi Rape Victim 'Crushed Human Being,' Husband Says

Blames judge, not system, for sentence

(Newser) - The husband of the Saudi gang-rape victim sentenced to 200 lashes and 6 months in jail blamed one judge's vendetta—and not the Saudi judicial system itself—for her treatment "as a guilty person who committed a crime." He told CNN his wife has been a severely depressed,...

Saudi Rape Victim Gets Jail for Appealing

19-year-old woman earns 200 lashes and 6 months in prison

(Newser) - A Saudi woman who was gang-raped by 14 men has been sentenced to 200 lashes and 6 months in prison, the BBC reports. Her original crime was being in the car with a man unrelated to her, but her punishment was doubled and prison time added when she appealed the...

Pakistani Cleric Calls Ceasefire
Pakistani Cleric Calls Ceasefire
Oct 29, 2007 12:07 PM CDT

Pakistani Cleric Calls Ceasefire

Dozens killed in clashes with government troops, helicopters

(Newser) - Supporters of an extremist cleric who had declared a jihad against Pakistan agreed to a ceasefire today after fierce fighting this weekend claimed between 50 and 60 of their number, Al Jazeera reports. Pakistan had sent 2,500 paramilitary troops to Swat to head off Maulana Fazlullah, who wants to...

Gay Nigerians Face Death by Stoning
Gay Nigerians Face Death by Stoning
Aug 10, 2007 6:41 PM CDT

Gay Nigerians Face Death by Stoning

Suspects accused of violating Islamic law; parliament mulls ban on gay groups

(Newser) - Eighteen Nigerian men arrested on suspicion of sodomy face death by stoning under the nation’s Sharia law. Police found the men, reportedly dressed as women, in a hotel in the northern state of Bauchi, where they were allegedly celebrating a “gay wedding.”

Death Toll in Red Mosque Siege Tops 80

Commandos clear compound after 8-day standoff, 35-hour battle

(Newser) - Soldiers completed the takeover of the Red Mosque early today, removing the final militants who had occupied the Islamabad compound during an 8-day siege. At least 80 were killed and 33 wounded in the past week, including 50 radicals and 10 soldiers in the climactic 35-hour final assault. "Now...

Pakistan Mosque Battle Kills 9
Pakistan Mosque Battle Kills 9
Jul 3, 2007 4:35 PM CDT

Pakistan Mosque Battle Kills 9

Islamic students clash with security forces in shootout; 140 wounded

(Newser) - A heavy gun battle between Pakistan's government and armed students at a radical mosque has left nine dead, the BBC reports. The melee lasted throughout the day as soldiers traded fire with militant students at Islamabad's controversial Lal Masjid, or Red Mosque. Among the dead were three female students, a...

Presidential Peck Sets Off Iranian Sex Scandal

A kiss on the hand lands Ahmadinejad in hot water with hard-liners

(Newser) - Iranian president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad is at the center of an unlikely sex scandal today, after being caught on camera kissing the hand—even if it was gloved—of a retired schoolteacher. Ahmadinejad's sexy faux pas, at a ceremony honoring the country's teachers, is a violation of Shariah law, hard-liners say.

Nigerian 'Lesbian' Turns Herself In
Nigerian 'Lesbian' Turns Herself In
Apr 28, 2007 10:40 PM CDT

Nigerian 'Lesbian' Turns Herself In

Pursued by police after 'gay' wedding, woman says she's straight

(Newser) - The Nigerian woman whose story of lesbian love on the run made international headlines yesterday has news for the authorities who hoped to arrest her: she's not a lesbian. "I have never practiced— never heard the word 'lesbian'—truly," says Aunty Madiguri, who was accused of violating Sharia...

Nigerian Lesbians Take Forbidden Love on the Run

(Newser) - Five Nigerian lesbians are running for their love after a weekend wedding put them in direct violation of the local Islamic law. Police have issued arrest warrants against Aunty Maiduguri and her four wives, charging them with violating the Sharia law that governs much of northern Nigeria.

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