1. Shari’a in the West Muslim wedding in the U.S. Muslim wedding in the U.K.

2. Marriage Forced marriage versus arranged marriage Rukhsana Naz was murdered by her family after fleeing an arranged marriage in 1999 Iqbal Sacranie, Secretary General of the Muslim Council of Britain Muslim wedding in the U.K.

3. Polygamy Difference of jurisprudence between European countries From complete prohibition in the UK to acknowledgement in France (until the 1990s) Debate among Muslim scholars Dr. Fawzia Ashmawi is an Islamic Studies professor at Geneva University and an European Muslim activist Dr. Aziza Al-Hibri is a law professor at the University of Richmond and founder of Karamah, an organization of Muslim women lawyers dedicated to empowering Muslim women within an Islamic framework.

4. Talaq (Divorce) In one typical case where the husband persisted in denying his divorced wife the Islamic talaq on grounds that she had committed adultery, the MLSC wrote the following letter[1]: [1] Dear Mr X, Assalamu alaykum The members of the Shariah Council, after having discussed your wife’s application for an Islamic divorce and after looking into your submission of (dates) have unanimously agreed to inform you that: 1) Adultery is one of the most heinous crimes in Islamic law, the punishment for which is death by stoning. But as Britain is not a Muslim state such a punishment may not be carried out here. This punishment can only be administered in a Muslim state after due process. 2) The laws of marriage and divorce for their application do not need the authority of a Muslim state hence a Muslim can marry and divorce in Britain according to Islamic law. 3) On the basis of your letter which allege adultery against your wife we can assure you that she will be punished by Allah almighty for her immorality but we regret that you are not entitled to withhold divorce from her as a measure of punishment in this respect. In Islamic law, divorce is the provision for permanent separation of a couple. It must not be used as a penal instrument. Hence the Shariah Council acting according to Islamic law regrets that it must reject your application in this regard. 4) The Council does not accept your view that as a Muslim you need not recognize an English civil divorce. Muslims are required by the Shariah to observe the laws of the country wherein they reside. 5) According to the rules of Shariah once you have become separated from your wife you have only two options a) secure a reconciliation. b) if this cannot be achieved or is not desirable then you must divorce your wife according to Islamic law. There is no option of a suspended state between marriage and divorce available to a Muslim couple at all. 6) Finally the Council has decided to request you to pronounce an Islamic divorce against your wife within 15 day of this letter’s postmark so that you can end a merely paper relationship between you and your wife. Yours sincerely… [1][1] Quoted in Shah-Kazemi, Sonia, Untying the knot, p. 44. [1] Zaki Badawi, former head of the Muslim Council of Britain (Jan. 1924 – Jan. 2006)

5. The Islamic Shari’a Council of England and Ireland first attempts to reconcile the couple. If this fails, the council may divorce the couple on any of the following grounds: –the husband suffers certain physical defects –the husband accuses the wife of unchastity –the husband is missing for a specific period –the husband ill-treats the wife –the husband fails to perform his marital obligations –the husband fails to provide maintenance in spite to having the means to do so –the husband refuses to comply with the judge order to divorce his wife for one of the mentioned reasons

6. Custody of Children By Rohan Minogue Jul 25, 2006, 3:32 GMTAmsterdam - Two children have spent the past month in the Dutch embassy in Damascus, caught in a tug-of-love between their Syrian father and Dutch mother and between two conflicting concepts of family law. Ammar, 13, and Sara, 10, are being cared for by the diplomats, and a teacher has been specially flown in to tend to their schooling, but they lack the normal context of family and friends that others their age have as a matter of course.Ammar celebrated his birthday under these conditions on July 12. According to his mother, Janneke Schoonhoven, he is 'desperate' to mark his next birthday at home in Oude Pekela in the northern Netherlands. As of Oct. 13 th, 2006, the children remained in the Dutch embassy awaiting return to the Netherlands.

7. Adaptation or Rejection of Shari’a Law Fatwas from the European Council of Fatwas Riba Mixed marriage http://www.e-cfr.org/eng/http://www.e-cfr.org/eng/ (European Council for Fatwa and Research) http://www.e-cfr.org/eng/ ?