The spread among some of our women—may Allah guide them—of the phenomenon of wearing the niqab in a conspicuous manner, which varies between wide and narrow

The questioner : He says: O honorable Shaykh! The phenomenon of wearing the niqab in a conspicuous manner has spread among some of our women—may Allah guide them. It varies between wide and narrow. Some of them wear a wide niqab but put a covering over it. You will find attached to this question—O honorable Shaykh—two models of these niqabs. I ask you—may Allah preserve you—to clarify the ruling on wearing them, whether in the state of ihram or otherwise, when going down to the markets and the like?

The Shaykh : Yes. I say—may Allah bless you: The niqab is originally permissible. We cannot say that it is forbidden, because it existed in the time of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him). The evidence for its existence among women is that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) forbade the woman in the state of ihram from wearing the niqab. The fact that he forbade the woman in the state of ihram from wearing the niqab indicates that this was one of the customs of women who were not in the state of ihram. However, if it leads to harm, we do not issue a ruling that it is permissible. We do not issue a ruling that it is permissible for the sake of educating the community.
If someone asks: How do you forbid what was lawful in the time of the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him)? I say: I forbid it because it leads to harm. Women began to widen the niqab, decorate the niqab, and apply kohl, and evil resulted. The eye may cause more temptation than looking at the face.
If someone asks: Has anyone preceded you in forbidding what was permissible for the sake of education?
The answer is: Yes. The righteous caliph 'Umar ibn al-Khattab preceded me in this, about whom the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: . In what matter? In one of the most dangerous matters. The triple divorce in the time of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), in the time of Abu Bakr, and for two years of 'Umar's caliphate, the triple divorce was one. That is, if a man says to his wife: You are divorced, you are divorced, you are divorced, it is one divorce. In whose time? Answer, in the time of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), in the time of Abu Bakr, in the time of two years of 'Umar's caliphate, the triple divorce was one. And the three divorces, if combined in one word or in one session, are forbidden. So the triple divorce became common in the time of 'Umar. When it became common, he said (may Allah be pleased with him): To discipline them, he enforced it upon them. He said: Any person who divorces his wife three times in one session, we will compel him and prevent him from taking back his wife. Even though taking back the wife is lawful, is it not lawful in principle? It is lawful. But he saw that people had fallen into the forbidden, so he forbade the lawful. This is wise policy, that a person should consider the conditions of the community. And you have heard that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) refrained from demolishing the Ka'bah and returning it to the foundations of Ibrahim out of fear of what?—Answer, O people—out of fear of fitnah. Yes.