Online shared publications incorrectly mean that a large number of cases of COVID-19 in countries where Muslims use niqabs are evidence that facial blankets are useless to prevent the spread of coronavirus.
Messages that share the claim can be viewed Array and Array
The literature lists the number of cases shown of COVID-19 in Pakistan, Iran, Turkey, Saudi Arabia and India, all in thousands. (You know where those figures come from, but they’re all well below existing monkeys. The total number of World Health Organization for India instances, from 1,583,792 to 30 July (covid19.who.int/) is more than 2.5 times higher than the number reported in the message).
Below is a photograph of women dressed in the niqab, a complete Islamic veil, along with a text that reads: “The face has covered its whole lifeArray … And we reported having covid-19. He thinks other people think.”
Linking coronavirus infection rates in these countries with niqab is misleading for several reasons.
According to the Pew Research Center (here), Pakistan, Iran, Turkey and Saudi Arabia have Muslim populations of 96% or more. In India, however, only about 14.2% of the population is considered Muslim at the 2011 census (here).
The message also ignores the fact that niqabs historically only wear them women, meaning that those who wear the veil would constitute only a part of the Muslim population.
This figure is still diluted because not all Muslim women choose to use niqabs or other face coverings such as burkas. A 2013 study found that only 2% of Turkish respondents said a niqab was a suitable garment for women to wear in public, ranging from 32% in Pakistan and 63% in Saudi Arabia (see pages 56-57 tinyurl. Com / y4quafah).
For all these reasons, it is misleading to draw conclusions about the effectiveness of the mask in combat against COVID-19 on the basis of the concept that the population of certain countries has “used a mask all their life”.
The World Health Organization has been recommending since June (here) that governments ask everyone to wear cloth masks in public places where there is a threat of COVID-19 transmission to reduce the spread of the disease. However, WHO and other governments point out that masks do not replace other measures such as social estrangement (here).
According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), a mask “would probably not be the user, but it would possibly prevent you from transmitting the virus to others” (here).
False. High degrees of coronavirus in countries where niqab is used do not result in facial blankets being useless to prevent the spread of coronavirus.
This article was prepared through the Reuters Fact Check team. Learn more about our paintings by reviewing social media posts here.
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