Islamic Law in the News Roundup

ISLAMIC LAW IN THE NEWS The United Nations has planned a meeting on the situation in Afghanistan, including the Taliban's interpretation and application of Islamic law, at a meeting in Doha where the Taliban forces will not be represented. "The UN Security Council (UNSC) has unanimously condemned a ban by the Taliban on Afghan women … Continue reading Islamic Law in the News Roundup

Islamic Law in the News Roundup

ISLAMIC LAW IN THE NEWS Kenya sanctioned a man who disguised himself in a burqa to compete in a national chess competition for women. The cleric who performed former Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan's marriage declared the marriage to be against Islamic law, alleging that Khan's wife did not wait out the 130-day period (iddat) … Continue reading Islamic Law in the News Roundup

Islamic Law in the News Roundup

ISLAMIC LAW IN THE NEWS "The Taliban has ordered the shutting down of a women-run radio station in Afghanistan after accusing it of playing music during the holy month of Ramadan." For more content and context on the recent developments in Afghanistan, consult our Editor-in-Chief, Professor Intisar Rabb's “Resource Roundup: Afghanistan, the Taliban, and Islamic Law." Pundits have observed that … Continue reading Islamic Law in the News Roundup

Islamic Law in the News Roundup

ISLAMIC LAW IN THE NEWS Some observers have estimated that up to 80% of Islamic marriages in Ghana remain unregistered because "there are no forms available for Muslims to register their marriages under the Mohammedan or Islamic law." "The European Union representatives in a United Nations Commission on the Status of Women’s session said that … Continue reading Islamic Law in the News Roundup

Islamic Law in the News Roundup

ISLAMIC LAW IN THE NEWS Singapore, invoking the Internal Security Act, detained two people it considered to have "self-radicalized" by listening to speeches and statements made by Ismail Menk, "a Zimbabwean Salafi preacher, [who] has been banned from preaching in Singapore since 2015, because of his segregationist teachings, which promote religious disharmony." "Kenya Muslims National … Continue reading Islamic Law in the News Roundup

Documents of Sale as Living Objects

By Athina Pfeiffer Professor Marina Rustow's note: "Having been asked twice now to contribute to the ILB, I’ve been making my way into the corpus of Islamic notarial documents preserved in Cairo Geniza. In the hope of understanding them better, I taught a PhD seminar on them in Fall 2022. Two of my students, Amel … Continue reading Documents of Sale as Living Objects

Getting to know iqrārs

By Amel Bensalim Professor Marina Rustow's note: "Having been asked twice now to contribute to the ILB, I’ve been making my way into the corpus of Islamic notarial documents preserved in Cairo Geniza. In the hope of understanding them better, I taught a PhD seminar on them in Fall 2022. Two of my students, Amel … Continue reading Getting to know iqrārs

Why I No Longer Use the Term “Qāḍī-Court Documents”

By Marina Rustow I came into my graduate seminar on Arabic legal documents with some experience in paleography and diplomatics, but vanishingly little knowledge of the material I was going to be teaching. I knew I wouldn’t always, or even often, have answers about how to read the sources, let alone how the judicial system … Continue reading Why I No Longer Use the Term “Qāḍī-Court Documents”

Are Medieval Arabic Judicial Documents as Opaque as They Look?

By Marina Rustow Legal documents have survived from the medieval Islamic world in considerable quantity, but the mystery of their quotidian production and use abides. The mystery concerns personnel and physical location: Who wrote documents, and where? Where did witnesses sign them? To what extent were judges involved in their production and handling? Over the … Continue reading Are Medieval Arabic Judicial Documents as Opaque as They Look?

Islamic Law in the News Roundup

ISLAMIC LAW IN THE NEWS "Women in Afghanistan carried out a protest against the Taliban-led regime after they banned women from working for Non-Government Organisations (NGOs)." "Even before the Taliban barred Afghan women from working at non-governmental groups, their forces visited the office of one local organization in the capital Kabul several times to check … Continue reading Islamic Law in the News Roundup