Gazan cops told to man up

Gazan men less than in touch with their male side could find themselves on the wrong side of the law, after a senior Hamas official Tuesday called on security forces to make sure the “standards of manliness” are kept up.

At a graduation ceremony for new security officers, Interior Minister Fathi Hammad told the cops that they should “keep an eye on those involved in reducing standards of manliness,” the Ma’an news agency reported.

While Hammad did not detail his “standards of manliness,” last month the Palestinian Center for Human Rights released a report that young men with “inappropriate hairstyles” had been rounded up by Hamas and forced to get haircuts that were considered more acceptable to the Islamist leadership in Gaza.

According to the group, the “young men were forced to get haircuts in a humiliating way and several of them were beaten. They were also forced to sign statements saying they will never grow their hair or have strange hairstyles or even wear low-waist trousers.”

At the graduation ceremony on Tuesday, Hammad said that his ministry and the security officers “have their own methods which will be used very openly.” He also praised the new officers and called them great examples to follow.