Question 1
I hope you are well, and may Allah give you strength to continue serving the community with your knowledge. Aameen. I understand you are busy with various commitments, but I would really appreciate your assistance with a dilemma I currently have. I am divorced and have a 7-year-old daughter who currently stays with my ex-wife, with a visitation schedule in place. My ex-wife is now remarried, and I am concerned about her welfare. I just want to know Islamically—since she is 7 years old—can I have full custody of her with my good intention of allowing the mother to have contact with the child if she wishes to do so? May the Almighty reward you for your inspiring work in your dawah-related matters.
Answer 1
Question 2
As Salaamu Alaikum,
If a couple breaks up, how are the kids divided up in a custodial arrangement, assuming that boys and girls are involved? And are there any restrictions on where or how far away from the other parent the custodial parent can choose to live? For example, can the custodial parent take the child to Saudi Arabia while the other parent lives in England?
Answer 2
Question 3
My wife insists on Talaq, which I refuse to utter as it will be the third time, and I offer reconciliation and compromise. She then asked for Khulaa (divorce initiated by the wife). She also wants Talaq due to Darar (harm) and has obtained a non-molestation order from the family court. She says she will care for our 7-year-old son only if we divorce. We had an Islamic marriage according to the Hanafi Madhab.
What are her rights after Talaq in this situation? I also bought two properties in her sole name as security using my own money, and I want them back if we separate.
Answer 3
Question 4
My wife gave birth to a baby boy with Down Syndrome. She refuses to breastfeed, take custody of, and wants to abandon him. She told me to send him to foster care or give him to a family that doesn’t mind raising such a child. She says that she isn’t obligated by Sharia Law to take custody of a disabled child and that this is her right. We decided to go to a court of Sharia to settle this dispute. It is worth mentioning that we are a happily married couple. In light of this, is it valid for a woman to abandon her disabled child?
Answer 4
Question 5
What are the Islamic duties of a father if he divorces or separates from his wife and they have a child?
Answer 5
Question 6
I need guidance in this situation:
My husband is in jail for murder, and has not been incarcerated yet. It has been one year now and this is causing me great stress and pain. We have a child, and I am not receiving any financial support from him or his family. My child does not know that her father is in jail, and I have kept her away from seeing him because I know how much it would hurt her. Given these circumstances, am I able to seek a divorce?
He is asking to see his child. Does he still have the right to see his child while in jail? If a divorce occurs, do I still have to bring my child to see him?
Answer 6
Question 7
Asalamu Aleikum,I was married to a Muslim man from a different culture, who is 18 years older than me, and I lived with him, his mother, and his 5-year-old daughter (at the time of the marriage) from a previous marriage. Our marriage was not arranged, we married out of mutual acceptance and feelings towards each other. I saw how he treated his mother and sisters and assumed he would treat me similarly.
However, right after our marriage, I realized I was completely wrong. Despite knowing he had feelings for me, I felt more like a servant than a wife. I was doing all the housework for him and his daughter. I loved his daughter, and she loved me in return, treating me like a mother and a friend. Yet, every time we argued, my husband would say I was not contributing enough to the household.
He enforced the idea that I should work, always emphasizing the importance of preparing for the future in case he couldn’t provide for me. I wanted to be a housewife, but he always compared me to his 3 successful sisters, creating competition.
He was always busy with work outside of his full-time job and neglected me both emotionally and physically. Our house was constantly full of unexpected visitors, which was unacceptable in my culture but normal in his. This affected our ability to maintain intimacy, as I was always available to him, even when exhausted from overwork, yet he rejected me, citing his busyness.
While overwhelmed, I met a man at work a year and a half ago, who filled the emotional and physical gaps my husband was neglecting. I didn’t want to be with this man, but I couldn’t resist the attention and care he gave me. During my pregnancy, my husband neglected me even more, not speaking or sleeping in the same bed for over 3 months due to a fight. After Allah blessed us with a beautiful daughter, I committed a sin with my colleague. I feel guilty and weak for continuing this relationship, despite knowing it was wrong, until my husband found out.
Now, we are in the process of divorce. Unable to keep my job and raise the child in the western country, I decided to return to my hometown to live with my mother.
After my husband told me I would have custody of the child and he would help, it seems his family pressured him to seek custody, believing I am unqualified to raise our daughter.
He tricked me into giving him the gold his family bought for me, claiming it was needed for another marriage, before revealing he had learned about my mistake.
Please answer the following questions:
I am asking Allah for forgiveness and believe He is greater than my sin. My husband’s attitude played a major role in my mistake, but I understand I had no excuse for committing this sin. How can I overcome the humiliation, especially since everyone knows about it?
If I was not punished in this life, will Allah still punish me in the hereafter?
I have always loved my husband and still do. I hope he can forgive me, even though I know it's impossible due to his family’s interference. Do you think anyone can forgive such a mistake?
My husband’s family is pressuring him to take custody of our child. What should I do in this situation?
Do you think our marriage was healthy? Was Allah’s will behind all of this to save me from further stress before something worse could happen?
His family is asking for the dowry and the gold back. Should I give it back due to my sin? Or was he not supposed to take it in the first place?
My mother, although she witnessed my suffering and predicted the outcome, feels a lot of shame and pain. How can I make up for what I have done to her?
Answer 7
Question 8
My daughter lives in the US with her mother, my ex-wife, who hasn't remarried yet. If she does get married, who has the right to take custody of our daughter, especially since the new husband does not mind her staying with her mother? Additionally, my ex-wife offered to take full custody of our daughter in return for delaying claiming child support for one year. It’s worth mentioning that when she asked for Khulu` (divorce initiated by the wife, in which she relinquishes her financial rights), and I agreed, her father told me that I am not required to spend on the daughter until I complete my PhD. What is the ruling in Sharia regarding this arrangement?
Answer 8
Question 9
I live in England, and my ex-wife is from Toronto, Canada. We recently underwent a divorce, and she left England with our child to her home country without my permission. I am unable to provide my child with support, care, or security. I tried moving to Canada for the sake of my child, but I am not allowed to work there. If she moves back to England, I can provide for her, but while she is in Canada, my son is deprived of fatherly care and guardianship.
Can she remain in Canada without my permission? Is it permissible for her to let the child forgo his father’s care, security, and support just because she wants to raise him in her home country?
Answer 9
Question 10
Can I fight in court to keep my child with me and ask for full custody?
Answer 10