many westerners think that hijab (veil) is the symbol of oppression of the muslim woman. several western caricaturists depict the muslim woman typically as one wearing a black "aba'a" : a dress that covers all her body except for her eyes. she is usually fat and sad! the aim behind this is usually to criticize such costume and confirm the image of the oppressed muslim woman in the western minds! we refuted that image in a previous article "arabs and women slavery" in which we mentioned the reaction of saudi female students to the comments of karen hughes, the middle east emissary of the american administration, and how they proved their love of their islamic costume and hijab. they were proud and had no intention to give this up. however, is hijab an islamic innovation?