Friday, October 30, 2009
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MOGADISHU, Somalia, Oct. 30 (UPI) -- Women who violate a radical brand of Islamic law are being beaten by militants in control of parts of Somalia's capital of Mogadishu, witnesses say.
Hooded al-Shabaab gunmen rounded up 50 women for failure to wear a veil and more than 130 men and women were detained Thursday for violations including failure to wear socks or chewing khat leaves, CNN reported.
"Just today, al-Shabaab dispatched men with whips to the streets around Bakara market and they are flogging any woman who is found not wearing socks," a female maize trader told CNN. "Most of these women were vegetable traders, so they are poor and can't afford to buy veils."
Earlier this month, al-Shabaab militants in an area of northern Mogadishu whipped women for wearing bras.
Al-Shabaab is considered a terrorist organization by the United States because of its ties to al-Qaida.
Source: UPI, Oct 30, 2009