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From Gender segregation and Muslims, Wikipedia:

The second caliph Umar also prohibited women from attending mosques especially at night because he feared they may be sexually harassed or assaulted by men, and he asked them to pray at home.

Why did the ban restrict the movement of women, rather than the movement of men?

Rebecca J. Stones
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Golden Cuy
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  • I think that the physical strength play a role here! But one could find beginnings of this idea in earlier times. Like ahadith who more or less say that for women praying at home is preferable, defining a special door of the mosque for entrance/exit for women only etc. – Medi1Saif May 18 '16 at 13:27
  • Maybe this is also helpful http://islam.stackexchange.com/questions/25106/where-was-the-first-wall-put-inside-a-mosque – Medi1Saif May 18 '16 at 13:29
  • Proactive... @17163 – Ahmed Apr 09 '17 at 20:16

1 Answers1

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This question is based on a false/baseless story. In Bukhari, the most authenticated Hadith book in Islam, you find a different stance from Umar

حَدَّثَنَا يُوسُفُ بْنُ مُوسَى، حَدَّثَنَا أَبُو أُسَامَةَ، حَدَّثَنَا عُبَيْدُ اللَّهِ بْنُ عُمَرَ، عَنْ نَافِعٍ، عَنِ ابْنِ عُمَرَ، قَالَ: كَانَتِ امْرَأَةٌ لِعُمَرَ تَشْهَدُ صَلاَةَ الصُّبْحِ وَالعِشَاءِ فِي الجَمَاعَةِ فِي المَسْجِدِ، فَقِيلَ لَهَا: لِمَ تَخْرُجِينَ وَقَدْ تَعْلَمِينَ أَنَّ عُمَرَ يَكْرَهُ ذَلِكَ وَيَغَارُ؟ قَالَتْ: وَمَا يَمْنَعُهُ أَنْ يَنْهَانِي؟ قَالَ: يَمْنَعُهُ قَوْلُ رَسُولِ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ: «لاَ تَمْنَعُوا إِمَاءَ اللَّهِ مَسَاجِدَ اللَّهِ»

Translation:

Narrated Ibn Umar: One of the wives of Umar (bin Al-Khattab) used to offer the Fajr and the Isha prayer in congregation in the Mosque. She was asked why she had come out for the prayer as she knew that `Umar disliked it, and he has great ghaira (self-respect). She replied, "What prevents him from stopping me from this act?" The other replied, "The statement of Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) : 'Do not stop Allah's women-slaves from going to Allah's Mosques' prevents him.

Tarek
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    Please consider elaborating your answer, as is it seems to me more likely to be a comment, an edit might make it more helpful. – Medi1Saif May 23 '16 at 10:20