The former Imam of Makkah Great Mosque has called for a change in attitude towards sex segregation in Saudi Arabia during a televised broadcast, saying it has now become a “phobia or fear of women”.
Adel Al Kalbani formerly held one of the most senior religious positions in the country but was also known for hard-line statements and espousing a strict interpretation of Islam. He is now among a group of reformed imams looking to promote a more moderate school of Islamic thought in Saudi Arabia. During a broadcast on Saudi television, he said that Saudi society has a heightened sensitivity when it came to separating women from men.
He said that modern interpretations of segregation were more conservative than those during the times of the Prophet. Mr Al Kalbani added that in the early days of Islam, men and women prayed in the same room. In most mosques today, women have a separate prayer space.
“Unfortunately, today, we have such a high amount of paranoia. Even in a mosque, the place of worship, we segregate them, we do not see them, they do not see us, they only hear us through microphones,” he said in comments critical of the heightened religious sensitivity.
He added that nowhere in the Sunna, or the way of the Prophet Mohammed, did he say there should be a barrier between men and women praying in a mosque – countering decades of Islamic thought that believed it to be necessary.
In Saudi Arabia, the separation of sexes crosses almost all aspects of public life, not just places of worship.
For years, women have been required to use male chaperones outside the home, wear niqabs or full-face veils in public and until last year were not allowed to drive.
Mr Al Kalbani said that Saudi society is changing, for the better in his opinion, to be more inclusive of Saudi women in society.
He also said that a taboo about calling women by their first name was unfounded. In parts of Saudi Arabia, as in a number of Arab states, there is a belief among some people that females’ names should only be known to their relatives.
“Our women and daughters are not better than Aisha bint Abu Bakr, or Hafsa bint Omar or Zaineb bint Jahsh,” he said referring to the wives of the Prophet Mohammed. “All the Muslim women’s names are known and their fathers’ names are known and they made great contributions to their names, and it was no dishonour that people knew their names.”
He said that modern Saudi society still struggles with a “fear and phobia” of women.
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Rugby World Cup (all times UAE)
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Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Sole survivors
- Cecelia Crocker was on board Northwest Airlines Flight 255 in 1987 when it crashed in Detroit, killing 154 people, including her parents and brother. The plane had hit a light pole on take off
- George Lamson Jr, from Minnesota, was on a Galaxy Airlines flight that crashed in Reno in 1985, killing 68 people. His entire seat was launched out of the plane
- Bahia Bakari, then 12, survived when a Yemenia Airways flight crashed near the Comoros in 2009, killing 152. She was found clinging to wreckage after floating in the ocean for 13 hours.
- Jim Polehinke was the co-pilot and sole survivor of a 2006 Comair flight that crashed in Lexington, Kentucky, killing 49.
F1 2020 calendar
March 15 - Australia, Melbourne; March 22 - Bahrain, Sakhir; April 5 - Vietnam, Hanoi; April 19 - China, Shanghai; May 3 - Netherlands, Zandvoort; May 20 - Spain, Barcelona; May 24 - Monaco, Monaco; June 7 - Azerbaijan, Baku; June 14 - Canada, Montreal; June 28 - France, Le Castellet; July 5 - Austria, Spielberg; July 19 - Great Britain, Silverstone; August 2 - Hungary, Budapest; August 30 - Belgium, Spa; September 6 - Italy, Monza; September 20 - Singapore, Singapore; September 27 - Russia, Sochi; October 11 - Japan, Suzuka; October 25 - United States, Austin; November 1 - Mexico City, Mexico City; November 15 - Brazil, Sao Paulo; November 29 - Abu Dhabi, Abu Dhabi.
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Sugary teas and iced coffees
The tax authority is yet to release a list of the taxed products, but it appears likely that sugary iced teas and cold coffees will be hit.
For instance, the non-fizzy drink AriZona Iced Tea contains 65 grams of sugar – about 16 teaspoons – per 680ml can. The average can costs about Dh6, which would rise to Dh9.
Cold coffee brands are likely to be hit too. Drinks such as Starbucks Bottled Mocha Frappuccino contain 31g of sugar in 270ml, while Nescafe Mocha in a can contains 15.6g of sugar in a 240ml can.
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Chelsea 2
Willian (13'), Ross Barkley (64')
Liverpool 0
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