Islamists deny forcing hijab on women

The Islamist group Ansar Dine, currently taking over in Mali's northern city of Timbuktu, have denied that they are forcing Timbuktu females to wear a headscarf (also known as hijab). It has been reported that many women in Timbuktu were arrested by Ansar Dine's militants because they were out  with their heads uncovered. The reports also said that a curfew was imposed on women after 11pm. However, these reports were denied by the group's spokesperson Sanad Ould Amama, who said that Ansar Dine "is yet to impose Hijab." "There isn't a single woman in our prisons. We didn't arrest any woman for not wearing the Hijab as we are yet to force the city's women to wear it. At the moment we are only obliging them to wear modest clothes" he said in a press release. Ould Amama revealed that Ansar Dine are planning to build a prison for women who commit crimes in which they will be held until they are prosecuted. Ansar Dine took over in Timbuktu five months ago after a military coup toppled the government in the area.