Divorced Afghan child brides forced to return to former husbands under Taliban rule
The BBC, following the case of Bibi Nazdana, reported that the Taliban is invalidating divorces granted by the Afghan court - forcing divorced child brides to return to their previous marital status.
The Taliban is attempting to force divorced child brides to return to their adult former husbands, despite the girls having been granted divorce by the Afghan government, the BBC reported on Sunday, citing the case of Bibi Nazdana.
Nazdana, who has now fled Afghanistan with her brother, spent two years pursuing a divorce which the Taliban claimed is invalid based on the terror group’s interpretation of Sharia law. Her case is reportedly one of tens of thousands.
At seven years old, Nazdana had been promised to a farmer in an attempt to reconcile feuding families. She petitioned the Afghan courts, who ruled in her favor, ending her marriage, the BBC said.
"The court congratulated me and said, 'You are now separated and free to marry whomever you want,'" Nazdana told the BBC.
After her former husband appealed to the courts in 2021, demanding the divorce be revoked, the Taliban disallowed Nazdana from representing herself - insisting that it violated Sharia law. Instead, the Taliban had Nazdana’s brother Shams represent her, according to the BBC.
"They told us if we didn't comply," said Shams to the BBC, "they would hand my sister over to him (Hekmatullah) by force."
Taliban rules divorce is invalid
Despite her brother’s representation, the Taliban-led court ruled in favor of Nazdana’s former husband - a registered member of the terror group.
"The previous corrupt administration's decision to cancel Hekmatullah and Nazdana's marriage was against the Sharia and rules of marriage," Abdulwahid Haqani, a media officer for the Taliban’s Supreme Court, told the BBC.
After the ruling, both Nazdana and Shams fled Afghanistan. Now 20, Nazdana said that she sought help from the United Nations and a variety of other parties but has not found support.
"I have knocked on many doors asking for help, including the UN, but no one has heard my voice," she told the BBC. "Where is the support? Don't I deserve freedom as a woman?"
The Taliban claimed that since taking control of the country, they reviewed some 355,000 cases - 30% of which were classified as family issues.
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