CNN: Women in Somalia's third-largest city, Baidoa, have been ordered to wear Islamic dress starting this week or face jail time, according to a resident and Somali media reports.
The order -- issued last week by Al-Shabaab, the radical Islamist militia that controls the city -- also warns business owners to close their shops during daily prayers, or they will be temporarily shut down, a local journalist said.
The militia has ordered women to cover their bodies and heads from view, according to a resident of Baidoa who did not want to be identified for security reasons. The clothing must be black, red or white, and women in the impoverished city are concerned that they will not be able to purchase clothing that conforms to the order, the resident said.
He said women would be jailed if they violated the order after it goes into effect Tuesday. Somalia's Shabelle Media, quoting an Al-Shabaab spokesman, said they would spend 12 hours in jail. >>> CNN's Ben Brumfield and journalist Mohamed Amiin Adow contributed to this report | Monday, April 20, 2009
