You just never know who might be under there. And that’s the problem: the burqa and niqab should be banned as a matter if public safety. But to do so would be “racist” and “Islamophobic.” Better to be machine-gunned to death by some burly jihadist in a burqa than be “hateful,” doncha know. Even in the best of circumstances, the burqa makes a woman into an object of shame, something to be hidden away. That alone should be reason for its banning. “Burqa-wearing gunmen attack Afghan police HQ near Kabul,” from AFP, February 21 (thanks to Kenneth):
Three suicide bombers wearing burqas attacked a police headquarters close to the Afghan capital Kabul on Friday, officials said, killing one policeman as concerns rise over security ahead of the presidential election.
The men were shot dead when they stormed the police base in Sarobi district, 30 miles east of Kabul, after another suicide attacker died when he detonated a vehicle bomb outside the entrance.
Taliban insurgents claimed responsibility for the two-hour attack, which occurred in the same district where presidential candidate Abdullah Abdullah’s convoy briefly came under gunfire on Wednesday.
“Today at about 6:20 am, a suicide bomber driving a minivan detonated himself at the entrance gate of the Sarobi police headquarters,” General Mohammad Zahir, Kabul province’s police chief, told AFP.
“Three other terrorists clad in women’s burqas entered the courtyard of the building and started firing and resisting the police and army forces. As a result of the attack, one officer was killed, and three others were wounded.”
Male militants have previously used the all-enveloping burqa to disguise themselves and evade security checks in Afghanistan, including in a 2012 attack when four French troops were killed.
Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid said the insurgents, who were ousted from power in 2001, were behind Friday’s attack.
“The mujahideen fighters were equipped with heavy and light weapons and suicide vests, and caused heavy casualties to the enemy,” he said in an emailed statement….