How have Muslim marriages legally ended around the turn of the 21st century? Who has the power
to initiate and resist shari'a derived divorce? When are husbands and wives made to bear the
costs of their marital breakdown? What does divorce law indicate about the development of
gender regimes in the Middle East and North Africa? This book opens with a description of the
historical development of Islamic divorce in the MENA. Subsequent chapters follow a Syrian male
judge a Moroccan female legal advice worker and a Libyan female judge as they deal with
divorce cases in which husbands wives their relatives and lawyers debate gender roles in
contemporary Muslim marriages. MENA 'state feminism' has increasingly equalized men's and
women's access to divorce and encouraged discussions about how spouses should treat each other
in marriage. The real life outcomes of these reforms have often been surprising. Moreover as
the last chapter explores jihadi proto-states (such as Islamic State) have violently rejected
state feminist divorce law reform. This accessible book will appeal to students researchers
and a general readership interested in Islamic law Middle Eastern studies gender and
sexuality and legal and social anthropology.
