Ben-Gurion University uncovers ‘modesty patrol’ cell

Israel’s Ben-Gurion University said on Saturday 26 March it has exposed an Islamist cell, whose members were conducting “modesty patrols” of female Muslim students on campus, writes Ilana Curiel for YNet.

Ben-Gurion University President Daniel Chamovitz said the cell consisted of three students who mainly targeted female Bedouin students living near Be’er Sheva, where the educational facility is located. He said the cell threatened to expose the female Bedouin students, who they believed were dressed in an immodest way, to their families and communities – which are largely conservative.

“The female students complained to us, although it’s a very socially complex situation because they can’t complain publicly,” Chamovitz said. He refused to answer if the students who had set up the cell were still enrolled at the university, but said the matter was “taken care of”. “We found ways to handle it. We warned them, however, we didn’t file a complaint with the police, because the victims of the incident must be the ones filing it,” he said, adding he doesn’t know if a complaint was actually filed by any of the victims.
Full report on the Ynet News site