Reports | 25 05 2020
The practice of polygamy, with men marrying up to four wives, has recently been spreading in the towns and villages of rural Idlib, in northern Syria. There are those who encourage, support, and even promote this practice in many ways, but as always, those who are most dramatically affected by this practice are women and children.
Promoting Polygamy
Jabhat al-Nusra has been in control of many areas in rural Idlib since 2013. The group encourages and promotes polygyny in its speeches, seminars, and Sharia educational sessions. The group also offers financial aid, 100,000 Syrian pounds to those who marry widows and take care of their children, and in some cases it offers a 20,000 Syrian pound salary, if the man is in need.
Destroying Families
According to Abu Jafar, Jabhat al-Nusra’s spokesman in rural Idlib, the group’s goal of encouraging second marriages is to implement Sharia rules, which allow a man to marry up to four wives.
“We used to have a happy marriage. I never imagined that my husband would marry another woman, but as soon as he joined Jabhat al-Nusra, he married another, and then he kept saying that Islam allowed it,” said Um Muhammad, whose husband pays more attention to his new wife than to his family and children. Um Muhammad decided to not ask for divorce, because, as she says, she cannot live without her children.
Naela, a 35-year-old woman, went through a similar experience, but her response was very different. “My former husband got married again because Jabhat al-Nusra offered him some money. For me, that was disloyal, so I got divorced,” she said. According to Nael, her children were affected the most, because they lose their mother, and their father is too busy with his new wife.
Jabhat al-Nusra’s Point of View
Jabhat al-Nusra, al-Qaeda’s branch in Syria, was established in late 2011, and is one of the most powerful factions in Jaysh al-Fath, which controls Idlib and its rural areas, and some areas in northern, rural Hama. Due to its power, Jabhat al-Nusra has the upper hand when it comes to implementing Sharia law in these areas.
When asked about polygamy and the reasons why Jabhat al-Nusra promotes and facilitates it, Abu al-Majd, a fighter in the group, said: “due to the war that has killed many men, the number of widows has increased remarkably. Therefore, we encourage a second marriage, so that widows have partners that take care of them and of their children.”
Many fighters in Jabhat al-Nusra are ready to have a second and a third marriage. “I have three wives,” said Abu al-Alaa, a 40-year-old fighter. “All the women I married are widows whose former husbands were killed in the war. I provide for and take care of them and their kids, and I do my best to be fair in the way I treat them,” he added.
Alaa, who carries a degree in social science, says that the story is not always the way they want it to sound. In some cases, men take advantage of women’s poverty and need. They marry them for a little while and they divorce them again. “Many girls were forced to marry because their families could not provide for them anymore. Families agree to any marriage, only to decrease their expenses. Unfortunately, many men take advantage of that,” she said.
“The war in Syria has made women’s lives miserable on many levels, and the increase in the number of cases of polygyny has actually led to an increase in divorce cases. While many of the old wives get divorced because they refuse to share their husbands with someone else, many of the new wives get divorced when they discover that they were deceived, and that the man was already married,” she said.
Samar, a 25-year-old girl, was one of those deceived by her former husband. Due to her family’s poverty, Samar agreed to marry a man in his forties who told her that his former wife had passed away, but, as Samar said: “I discovered later that he lied to me. I was actually his third wife, and he has six children. I therefore left and asked for divorce.”
Polygamy in Islam
“Muslim men are allowed to practice polygyny, that is, they can have more than one wife at the same time, up to a total of four. However, if a man cannot deal justly with more than one wife, then he must marry only one. The Qur’an says: but if ye fear that ye shall not be able to deal justly (with them), then only one, or (a captive) that your right hands possess,” said Sheikh Abdullah, a cleric from rural Idlib.
Sheikh Mudhaffar, on the other hand, has a different opinion. He believes that while a second marriage might help one family, it also might destroy another. “Many women do not accept polygamy which leads to divorce and negatively affects children. In order for the practice to be legal, the first wife’s consent should be provided.
According to the local council in Kafranbul, the cases of polygamy in southern, rural Idlib has increased from 5% before the war in 2011 to 20% currently, and the numbers will continue to increase as long as Jabhat al-Nusra is in power, and as long as the war continues.