Read in
Zeinab Ali, 27, is from the holy city of Najaf, the most important religious center for Shiites in Iraq. For her, a hijab is not enough to show her religious commitment. As a "muhannaka," she wears a veil wrapped around her head that goes under her chin and covers her entire body, showing only her face, while her hands disappear inside a pair of black gloves.
Many other Iraqi women have taken to wearing the muhannaka, and their number is rising, a reflection of the growing tide of religious conservatism in both Shiite and Sunni cities of Iraq.
