April 10, 2009

By KIM JANSSEN, Staff Writer From South Star News:

The police booking photo of alleged child killer Nour Hadid released Tuesday is an “insult against our religion,” says Hadid’s husband, Alaeddin.

Orland Park police detectives say the 26-year-old Muslim woman was treated as any other suspect in a murder probe would be, and they did not intend to humiliate her when they photographed her Sunday without her headscarf and wearing only a skimpy top.

In her police mugshot, Nour Hadid is shown with bare shoulders and no headscarf (left). By custom, some practicing women wear a hijab

(Courtesy/AP)

Many devout American Muslim women wear the “hijab,” or traditional headscarf, for religious identity and to signify their modesty, a virtue stressed in Islam for men and women.

There has been some debate among Muslim scholars as to whether the scarf is mandated in religious texts, but for most women who choose to wear the hijab, it is a religious obligation.

To many Muslims, taking off a woman’s hijab in public is akin to taking off someone’s clothes and making him or her stand in his or her underwear.

Some Muslim women also wear a “niqab,” or veil covering their face. But the niqab, many argue, is more of a cultural preference than a dress code enforced by Islam.

By Rumanna Hussain, Chicago Sun-Times

Nour Hadid is accused of beating her 2-year-old niece Bhia Hadid to death over four days at her home on the 9000 block of West 140th Street. The child had 55 separate bruises and was beaten “from head to toe,” according to prosecutors, who say Hadid confessed.

But Alaeddin Hadid – who insists his wife is innocent – said Orland Park police are “really going to be in big trouble” for releasing the woman’s booking photo to the news media after she was charged with first-degree murder.

The Hadids are Muslims and Nour “never leaves the home without covering up,” said Alaeddin, who’s vowed to sue.

By custom, some practicing Muslim women wear the hijab, or headscarf, and cover their arms and legs when in public.

In the mug shot, a bare-headed and obviously emotional Nour appears to be protecting her modesty with her hands.

“It is against our religion; we do not do this in our culture,” Alaeddin said.

“People have been calling me about this all day.”

Bhia Hadid’s funeral took place Thursday.

Suicide threats

Orland Park police Cmdr. Chuck Doll said the mug shot was taken “for identification purposes” before Hadid made her confession. Her headscarf was handed back to her after the photo was taken, Doll said.

“A matron was with her at all times while she was in our custody,” Doll said. A matron is a law enforcement official who works with women held in custody. “She was wearing a tank top, and she had the headscarf when she was interviewed.”

The headscarf later was taken from her after she made suicide threats, he said.

A sobbing Hadid appeared without the headscarf at the Bridgeview courthouse Tuesday and is being held without bail at the Cermak Medical Center at the Cook County Jail, where she remains on suicide watch.

Police have said her husband’s possible involvement in Bhia’s death still is under investigation.

Nour Hadid’s attorney, Frank Celani, said he hopes to speak with her today about the mug shot.

Respecting the accused

Islamic advocacy groups seem wary of taking up Hadid’s cause.

Spokesmen for the Council on Islamic American Relations, the Islamic Society of North America and the Bridgeview Mosque Foundation all declined to comment Thursday.

But Dr. Mohammed Sahloul, chairman of the Council of Islamic Organizations of Chicago, said that while police should follow the usual procedures with all defendants, “they should respect the modesty of the accused.”

Sahloul, who made it clear he was not aware of the Hadid case and was speaking in general terms about the hijab, pointed out that Muslim women are allowed to wear hijabs in photos for their state IDs.

“If it’s for the purposes of identification and they cover in public, then that’s going to be more effective in identifying them anyway,” he said.

Former chairman Kareem Irfan said, “It’s particularly humiliating because she appears to be in her underwear.

“I don’t condone what she’s alleged to have done.

“But if it was a nun accused of these crimes, would they treat her the same way?”

Kim Janssen can be reached at [email protected] or (708) 633-5998.