The Ramadan series "Jaafar al-Omda" has revived the debate over khul' laws in Egypt to the forefront of social media platforms again following the recent episode, which opened a legal debate between activists and lawyers.

A scene in the 18th episode of the series, in which Egyptian actor Mohamed Ramadan plays the role of the protagonist, highlighted the legal gaps regarding the repercussions of a wife filing a divorce lawsuit against her husband without his knowledge.

The controversial episode showed the marriage of actress Jouri Bakr – who played the role of a woman named "Wedad" to the artist Munther Rihana, who embodies the role of "Shawky" – without the knowledge of her husband, who was surprised by his deposition 7 months ago during her wedding, in a scene that was met with astonishment on social media.

Questions were raised about the validity of marriage legally and legally, and during the past hours the name of the series emerged on the platforms, amid sarcastic and reprehensible comments for what was described as a shocking scene.

Scene and interactions

In her reaction to the uproar, the artist Jouri Bakr posted on her Facebook page a picture from the scenes of the episode in which she responds to her ex-husband by saying, "Is I Mqoltlksh? I didn't take you off 7 months ago."

While a number of Egyptian lawyers confirmed that there are similar cases in reality due to the provisions of Egyptian law, amid calls to reconsider the law of khul' without the husband's knowledge, others considered that this khul' without the husband's knowledge is null and void and has negative repercussions on the entire family.

How did Al-Azhar agree to the law of khul' and that a woman takes off herself without her
husband's knowledge? This topic is not superimposed on each other, how can two people live in haram because there is a devil side and a stupid side

—  Osam⎌ Med (@1_U_9) April 9, 2023

Lawyer Walid Zahran said that we are facing a strong loophole that needs legislative intervention, adding in a blog post, "The scene of the series Jaafar Al-Omda has already shown the problem, and so the drama should be," pointing out that it is a suffering that still occurs realistically.

Regarding the details of the lawsuit, Zahran explained on Facebook, "The wife files a lawsuit for khul' against the husband without his knowledge, and the ruling for khul' is issued, and a law that may not be appealed, because it is the only ruling in Egypt that, once issued, becomes final."

The lawyer of cassation and the Supreme Constitutional Ashraf Qassem that the series opened fire on the law of khul', and continued in his blog "We have already warned of the seriousness of the Egyptian law of khul' and not Islamic that the husband, the judge and everyone have no will to khul' (..)."

Criticisms and questions

In turn, the lawyer of the High Appeal and the State Council, Adel Yahya, criticized the law as "illegitimate because of its problems and shortcomings," and continued, "Thank you because the Egyptian drama reviews realistic problems due to the problems and errors of some laws."

Al-Azhar responded to the frequently asked question, "Does the divorce of a wife take place if it occurs without the husband's knowledge and consent?" He asserted that Sharia "made khul' one of the ways to dissolve the marital knot in exchange for a compensation to which the woman is committed," and cited the Qur'an and Sunnah.

Al-Azhar believes that the issue of the husband's knowledge of the khul' lawsuit is "a purely judicial matter", reasoning that the announcement of the lawsuit is done by bailiffs under the sight and foresight of the Court of First Instance, adding, "When the divorce ruling was issued khul', the judgment became final?".

According to the fatwa of the Al-Azhar International Center for Fatwa – which was issued in early January 2018 – the verdict won the argument from the legal and legal points of view of what was stated in it, and the plaintiffs demanded the existence of nullity in the proceedings, forgery or fraud to prove this through the judiciary.

The Egyptian Dar al-Iftaa follows what is in force in the Egyptian judiciary, which requires the divorced woman to return the dowry to her husband and give up her legitimate financial rights to rule him to khul', including "the expense of pleasure and the alimony of the 'iddah."

Dar al-Ifta explained in a previous blog post that "the purpose of the legislator in regulating the khul' law is to have mercy on women from a marriage in which they cannot afford to continue, while not burdening the husband with costs and burdens, as the legitimate financial rights that are extinguished by khul' do not include her right to custody or the rights of the custodians."

The issue has recently received attention and interaction among bloggers, with blogger Mohamed Abu Zahra arguing that the state contributes to family disintegration with these laws.

Laws & Review

Commentator Mayar Alaa said on Facebook, "The divorce law and the divorce law in absentia are sweeping some amendments, it is unreasonable for a wife to divorce her husband without stressing the need to inform him, and it is also unreasonable for a husband to divorce his wife in absentia and keep quiet about the matter until she discovers it by chance."

For his part, blogger Hassan Ashour reacted to the dramatic scene, sarcastically, "We appeal to the state to intervene, it can abolish the divorce law or devise an application to inquire about divorced couples, similar to the application of car violations."

Article 20 of the Personal Status Act No. 1 of 2000 stipulates that "the spouses may agree to each other on khul', and if they do not agree to it, and the wife institutes her lawsuit at his request, redeems herself and deposes her husband by waiving all her legitimate financial rights, and returns the dowry paid to her, the court orders her to divorce him."