Beirut, July 31 (IANS/EFE): The extremist Islamic State (IS) has imposed restrictions on women's clothes in the areas they control in the Syrian province of Deir Ez-Zor, bordering Iraq, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) said Thursday.
According to SOHR, the jihadis have released a statement in Deir Ez-Zor province with rules for the clothes to be worn by people in the province.
The Islamist extremist group has ordered women to wear a full "niqab" that masks their eyes and an "abaya" or tunic which must cover the rest of their clothes and be wide enough to hide the shape of their body.
The "niqab" often hides the face but not the eyes, although it may cover the entire face.
The IS has also forbidden women from wearing high-heeled shoes and has warned all those who violate these rules that they would face harsh punishment.
The IS, formerly known as the Islamic State of Iraq and Greater Syria (ISIS), proclaimed an Islamic caliphate in Iraq and Syria in late June.
The group started imposing restrictions in the Syrian province of Raqqa in the northeast of the country Jan 20, banning smoking and music, as well imposing the full-face veil and the closure of all shops before and during prayer times.