MOSCOW – The authorities in Russia’s predominantly Muslim North Caucasus region of Dagestan implemented a temporary ban on Wednesday prohibiting women from wearing the niqab [veil].
This decision follows a series of coordinated attacks last month targeting churches and synagogues which claimed 22 lives.
The Dagestan Muftiate announced the ban in a statement on the Telegram messenger app, stating it was in response to a request from Russia’s ministry of nationality policy and religious affairs. Reports indicated that one of the assailants in the June 23 attacks had planned to escape while wearing a niqab.
The muftiate, representing Dagestani Muslims, specified that the ban would remain in effect “until the identified threats are neutralized and a new religious decree is issued,”. The niqab, a full-face veil, gained popularity in Dagestan amid an Islamic resurgence after the Soviet Union’s collapse in 1991, though only a minority of women in the region wear it.
The attacks on June 23, which targeted Orthodox churches, synagogues, and police checkpoints across Dagestan, resulted in a significant loss of life. Security forces engaged in gun battles with the attackers, leading to the destruction of a synagogue in Derbent.
Dagestan, previously plagued by Islamist insurgency from neighboring Chechnya, has seen improved security in recent years.
However, the incidents like the storming of Makhachkala airport by an anti-Israeli mob in October and a deadly attack on a Moscow concert hall claimed by an Islamic State affiliate in March highlighted the ongoing security challenges in the region.
