Let me venture into the debate here.
It is a common misconception -even among muslims- that a woman is ordered to be 'veiled' either because she is too provactive a creature to be let loose upon the male society and men would not be able to stop themselves, an argument some here made.
The other being that a woman is veiled and segregated to protect others from her highly charged urges.
Both are blatantly, and obviously wrong,and arise from a misunderstanding of the reasons behind the veil.
First and foremost, both men and women have to abide by a dress code under Islamic teachings, the man should wear a dress that is from his shins upwards, upto the neck, and till the wrists. HOwever, due to practical reasons, the man may go barechested, but it is disapproved.
So in essence, the only difference between a man and woman's usual Islamic dress, is her covering her hair and neck. Since many men also cover their hair with caps, turbans, cloths, the difference is minimal.
The reasons are modesty, and giving the society a semblence of piety.
Although the recent research in Egypt asks some searching questions, one has to look upon the pervailing socio-economic and cultural aspects that are coming into play there. A majority of young blooded males are not able to marry in Egypt, due to financial constraints. Nor do they seek to vent their urges in other ways, so the frustration can be seen taken out on the streets. It is ugly, but the phenomenon has nothing to do with actually wearing the 'veil'.
Islam enjoins a healthy sexuality, within married life. Outside, it is frowned upon, and every avenue that may lead to this is also disliked. Which is where veiling, and soft-segregation come in.
The woman's body is not to be seen as a commodity, to have and use, maybe even abuse. The woman, or man for that matter, must not be judged by superficial things like the size of certain assets, the length of her legs, etc. basically her looks.
The excessive commodotising of women's body that is seen in the West, is not a healthy alternative. Western feminists are also vocal in their opposition to such trends, which is why shows like beautfy pageants, and miss world competitions, are not shown on many terristorial tv. channels in Europe anymore.