Retired Egyptian actress Hala Shiha's recent announcement on social media that she would make a comeback soon has stirred wide controversy in Egypt, rekindling the debate on the hijab.
Shiha, 39, quit her acting career in 2005 after deciding to wear the hijab, the headscarf traditionally worn by Muslim women. In August 2017, Shiha provoked an outcry when she posted a picture of herself on Facebook in a niqab, the full face veil. Vowing never to take it off or to return to acting, she urged her fans not to share her old pictures as an actress so as "not to sin."