Fatwa: # 15701
Category: Divorce (Talaaq)
Country: South Africa
Date: 2nd October 2007

Title

Its been 2 years since the husband has been missing. Does Talaaq take place?

Question

After being in a nikkah for 10months, the marriage does not work out & a court divorce takes place.  Thereafter the husband disappears & the woman seeks an Islamic divorce.
It has been over 2 years now that the husband cannot be contacted or found. 
Please elaborate on the situation whether the woman may regard herself as divorced, & must she serve her iddat ? Can she now re-marry?

Answer

In the name of Allah, Most Gracious, Most Merciful

Assalaamu `alaykum waRahmatullahi Wabarakatoh

The woman can not be regarded as divorced if the husband did not divorce her. If the husband is missing, the wife may apply to the Judicial Committee of the Jamiat for an annulment of her marriage. 

And Allah knows best

Wassalam

Mufti Ebrahim Desai
Darul Iftaa

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