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Husband Accidentally Divorces Wife on Skype

Tells clerics he didn't mean it, to no avail

By Nick McMaster,  Newser Staff

Posted Oct 29, 2010 3:09 PM CDT

(Newser) – A Qatar man is paying a heavy price for a joke he made in a Skype chat—his marriage. He jokingly wrote "talak, talak, talak" ("I divorce thee, I divorce thee, I divorce thee") to his wife. He then apparently got worried and wrote to Islamic authorities about the matter, admitting that he doesn't "understand Islam very much and did not know about how talaq works." The authorities told him the divorce stands, reports the Telegraph.

What's worse, in order for the Qatari and his bride to be reunited, she must wait three months, marry another man, have sex with him, divorce him, wait another three months, and then marry her original husband again, the clerics ruled. "Allah and his Prophet has said the worst thing a couple does is to seek divorce," said the leader of a large Muslim organization. "This is a hated act but the provision for Talaq in Islam is for unavoidable circumstances not for teasing or jokes."

A copy of the Koran is displayed with a bible in the library of the Baitul Futuh Mosque in Morden on September 10, 2010 south of London, England.
A copy of the Koran is displayed with a bible in the library of the Baitul Futuh Mosque in Morden on September 10, 2010 south of London, England.   (Getty Images)
Be careful what you say...
Be careful what you say...   (AP Photo/Paul Sakuma, File)
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COMMENTS
Showing 3 of 34 comments
Zaheer Ahmad Tahir
Oct 31, 2010 5:43 PM CDT
In the Middle Ages more than 40 000 women were burnt at the stake accused of being witches in the name of Christianity. However, Christianity was not at fault, it was merely the religious clergy who were ignorant of its teachings and allowed such cruelty to be perpetuated. Similarly, any one who has read the Qur'an would know that this absurd ruling is totally alien to the teachings of Islam. These so called clerics need to read the Qur'an themselves instead of fooling the masses by passing their own twisted judgements.
George-Jetson
Oct 31, 2010 12:44 PM CDT
Why So Serious?
carouser
Oct 30, 2010 9:02 PM CDT
The oddity here must certainly be that had not the Skyper reported his actions no one would have known but he, his wife, and presumably God. But by admitting to the clerics he brought the Islamic law and the Quatari state into it, making divorce legally necessary. But why admit to something that would otherwise have almost certainly been overlooked as a joke, and, most likely, never discovered? http://scallywagandvagabond.com/2010/10/husband-accidentally-divorces-his-wife-over-skype/
 

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