I mean if you don't consider patriarchal control of and violence against women's bodies depraved then that's on you frankly. Iran's misogynistic laws and religiously justified social norms go way beyond simply the Hijab requirements. The fact that you are even caveating the point that it should be abolished is frankly a disgrace. Just to give another example: in Iran, based on what all my Persian communists comrades have told me, a common way in which child abuse occurs is through houses which act as sites for religiously sanctioned 'temporary marriages', which basically allow these to act as brothels (including for underage women). There are many Imams who frequent these, and feel protected by the supposed religious sanction. I have communist comrades who still live in Iran, and whose families who murdered and tortured to death by the theocratic regime. Also, Iran is not the only example of Islamism (I should have been more general instead of simply saying societies), as we can take any Islamist group you like whether in West Africa (the current hot spot for violent Jihadism), North Africa, the Middle East, or South East Asia. They can be governing political parties, governments or militant groups. If someone can give me a single example of non-reactionary Islamists I'll be legitimately amazed.

Rania did not answer your answer about Islamism and the West. You saying it's inconsequential based on the idea that there are tree surahs which can be interpreted in a certain way is a a completely idealist, un-Marxist position. The mainstream view in the Muslim world is that hell is eternal (at least for non-Muslims), notably among intellectuals and the main theological schools. There is indeed debate, and there will inevitably be a great amount of variation among Muslims, notably in the more liberalized societies of the West. This seems to me to be using purely abstract, religious justifications to argue for something being materially and politically inconsequential, which I don't think follows. Whether or not the Quran explicitly calls for women to cover their faces is not irrelevant (it of course does not), but Islam as a real, material phenomenon in the real world, does play a role in justifying and enforcing this. Just because we cannot will out of existence the material conditions that produce this situation doesn't mean they shouldn't be ruthlessly critiqued an distinguished from the socialist and communist conception of a society and its desired gender relations.

In terms of other verses:

Soorat al-Nisa:

• “Verily, those who disbelieve and did wrong [by concealing the truth about Prophet Muhammad and his message of true Islamic Monotheism written in the Tawraatt (Torah) and the Injeel (Gospel) with them]; Allaah will not forgive them, nor will He guide them to any way. Except the way of Hell, to dwell therein forever” [al-Nisa’ 4:168-169]

• “and whosoever disobeys Allaah and His Messenger, then verily, for him is the fire of Hell, he shall dwell therein forever” [al-Jinn 72:23] :

The Hadith/Sunnah also contain several gruesome descriptions of the punishments in hell, including (in al-Bukhaari, the most significant Hadith compiler) the cutting off of lips, flogging, drowning, stoning. Bukhaari also cites a tradition of Muhammad supposedly claiming that the majority of the inhabitants of hell will be women, for classically misogynistic reasons. Unbelievers, as those 'too proud to submit to God' are almost always included in the category of those who merit hell.

What Rania is either ignorantly or dishonestly ignoring above is that is is not only absurd and idealistic to presume, but is also not the case, that these beliefs have no influence on the views of, say, Christian minorities. They are used to justify religious violence against Christian minorities, for instance in West Africa.