Egypt's unemployment rate falls in Q2 '25 – CAPMAS    EGP swings vs. USD in early Sunday trade    EGX launches 1st phone app    Egypt achieves record primary budget surplus of EGP 629bn despite sharp fall in Suez Canal revenues    Escalation in Gaza, West Bank as Israeli strikes continue amid mounting international criticism    Egypt recovers collection of ancient artefacts from Netherlands    Resumption of production at El Nasr marks strategic step towards localising automotive industry: El-Shimy    Egypt harvests 315,000 cubic metres of rainwater in Sinai as part of flash flood protection measures    Egypt, UNDP discuss outcomes of joint projects, future environmental cooperation    United Bank achieves EGP 1.51bn net profit in H1 2025, up 26.9% year-on-year    After Putin summit, Trump says peace deal is best way to end Ukraine war    Egypt, Namibia explore closer pharmaceutical cooperation    Jordan condemns Israeli PM remarks on 'Greater Israel'    Renowned Egyptian novelist Sonallah Ibrahim dies at 88    Egypt's FM discusses Gaza, bilateral ties in calls with Saudi, South African counterparts    Egypt prepares to tackle seasonal air pollution in Nile Delta    Al-Sisi says any party thinking Egypt will neglect water rights is 'completely mistaken'    Egyptian, Ugandan Presidents open business forum to boost trade    Egypt's Sisi, Uganda's Museveni discuss boosting ties    Egypt's Sisi warns against unilateral Nile measures, reaffirms Egypt's water security stance    Egypt, Colombia discuss medical support for Palestinians injured in Gaza    Egypt, Huawei explore healthcare digital transformation cooperation    Egypt's Sisi, Sudan's Idris discuss strategic ties, stability    Egypt's govt. issues licensing controls for used cooking oil activities    Egypt to inaugurate Grand Egyptian Museum on 1 November    Egypt's Sisi: Egypt is gateway for aid to Gaza, not displacement    Greco-Roman rock-cut tombs unearthed in Egypt's Aswan    Egypt reveals heritage e-training portal    Sisi launches new support initiative for families of war, terrorism victims    Egypt expands e-ticketing to 110 heritage sites, adds self-service kiosks at Saqqara    Palm Hills Squash Open debuts with 48 international stars, $250,000 prize pool    On Sport to broadcast Pan Arab Golf Championship for Juniors and Ladies in Egypt    Golf Festival in Cairo to mark Arab Golf Federation's 50th anniversary    Germany among EU's priciest labour markets – official data    Paris Olympic gold '24 medals hit record value    A minute of silence for Egyptian sports    Russia says it's in sync with US, China, Pakistan on Taliban    It's a bit frustrating to draw at home: Real Madrid keeper after Villarreal game    Shoukry reviews with Guterres Egypt's efforts to achieve SDGs, promote human rights    Sudan says countries must cooperate on vaccines    Johnson & Johnson: Second shot boosts antibodies and protection against COVID-19    Egypt to tax bloggers, YouTubers    Egypt's FM asserts importance of stability in Libya, holding elections as scheduled    We mustn't lose touch: Muller after Bayern win in Bundesliga    Egypt records 36 new deaths from Covid-19, highest since mid June    Egypt sells $3 bln US-dollar dominated eurobonds    Gamal Hanafy's ceramic exhibition at Gezira Arts Centre is a must go    Italian Institute Director Davide Scalmani presents activities of the Cairo Institute for ITALIANA.IT platform    







Thank you for reporting!
This image will be automatically disabled when it gets reported by several people.



Religion takes center stage in custody battles
Published in Daily News Egypt on 27 - 10 - 2008

CAIRO: Unlike regular custody battles, over 50 cases currently being tried in Egypt's Family Courts are turning into religious conflicts. Christian men who converted to Islam are seeking custody of their children based on the religious difference.
Custody laws give mothers the right to raise their children until they turn 18, provided that the child is given the opportunity to choose which parent to live with at the age of 15.
In recent cases, some men have used the religion factor to override this law and gain custody of their children. After converting from Christianity to Islam, some men argue that their children can't be raised by their Christian mothers. They say their concern is that the children will be raised on the Christian faith, and not the newly-acquired faith of their fathers: Islam.
The change in how these cases are perceived - from mere legal procedures to religious conflicts - was triggered by a court ruling passed by a Family Court in Alexandria last September, granting custody of nine-year-old Christian twins, Andrew and Mario, to their Muslim father. The court based its ruling on a fatwa (religious edict) issued by Egypt s Dar El-Ifta on March 27, 2006, stipulating that children should follow the religion of their fathers unless they willingly change their religion as adults.
While the fatwa in essence said the mother can have custody of the children - raising Muslim children by a mother of a different faith doesn't contradict Islam - it also added a set of restrictions.
The fatwa, issued by Egypt's Grand Mufti Ali Gomaa, a copy of which was obtained by Daily News Egypt, says, "The religion of the two children should follow their Muslim father's, unless they change their religion with full will after puberty. If the mother teaches them her religion, takes them to churches, brings someone to teach them Christianity or it is feared that they may get familiar with a religion other than Islam or get used to non-Islamic customs and traditions by living with their Christian mother, she would lose their custody.
According to the Egyptian Union of Human Rights Organization (EUHRO), there are over 50 court cases of the same kind, following the Andrew-Mario verdict.
In a similar case, the Cairo Court of Appeals ruled on March 9, 2008 that 10-year-old Nancy and her five-year-old brother Andrew should live under the custody of their father, Ali Abdullah Ahmed, who converted to Islam and divorced their mother. The verdict was based on the same fatwa issued by Gomaa.
A first instance court had given the mother custody on May 9, 2006. The husband then appealed the ruling and submitted a copy of Gomaa's fatwa and consequently gained custody of the children.
Since there is no legal provision in the Personal Status Law denying a Christian mother custody after her husband/divorcee converts to Islam, a group of the involved Christian mothers called on President Hosni Mubarak to step in.
The EUHRO, which oversees these cases, sent an appeal to President Mubarak to intervene.
"There is no provision in the Personal Status Law preventing a Christian mother from having custody of her children in case the husband converts to Islam, Naguib Gobraiel, president of the EUHRO, told Daily News Egypt.
The ruling, he continued, "accentuates the concept of a religious state. Gobraiel explained that case has changed from a legal to a religious battle because the judges were influenced by Article 2 of the Constitution that says Sharia is the source of legislation.
Lawyer Gamal Hanafi, a Muslim Brotherhood MP, said, "Article 2 of the Constitution addresses the legislature not the judge. Therefore, judges should apply the provisions of law without being influenced by the legislation's Islamic frame of reference.
Hanafi called for "disengagement between the Personal Status laws and Sharia jurisprudence.
This case needs to be studied carefully so that Muslims and Christians can have equal legal rights, Hanafi told Daily News Egypt, expressing his reservation on Article 2.
"The position of Islamic law in the case of a Christian mother's custody of her children is clear and does not need interpretation, Abdel-Mo'ti Bayoumi, professor of Sharia and former Dean of the faculty of fundamentals of religion at Al-Azhar University, told Daily News Egypt.
"It is the right of the Muslim father to teach his children about Islam and make them believe in Prophet Mohamed and Jesus. But the mother will raise the children on the Christian teachings only, which would make them adverse to Islam and Muslims, he added.


Clic here to read the story from its source.