Sadr calls for hijab to be mandatory for women working on flights to Najaf

NAJAF — Muqtada al-Sadr has called for women working in public transport to wear hijab, “particularly Iraqi aircraft heading to Najaf and its airport,” in a statement demanding tighter control over what is sold and how people behave in the city.

The statement, dated Sept. 10, came days after a butcher in Najaf’s Maysan neighbourhood was arrested and accused of hunting wild boars, mincing the meat and selling it to customers as something else. Authorities confiscated the meat and referred him to the judiciary.

Sadr called for “strict oversight of markets, restaurants, shops, butcheries and all other products,” with goods meeting religious and health standards, and for a ban on forbidden goods, food and drink and anything violating the anti-normalisation law. He described Najaf as “the capital of Shiism in the entire world” and said conduct harming the city’s reputation should not be tolerated. “If this is not done, we will take a stand.”