The Nation of Iraq recently captured international headlines due to their consideration of passing legislation to lower the age of girls to legally marry to the age of nine. The legislation essentially gives Islamic clerics the authority to rule on the legality of marriages within the state on the basis of Islamic Law. This has drawn a lot of criticism from human rights activists as well as the International Community. Batta, a child-bride survivor currently supporting herself as a prostitute in Erbil, has openly come out in protest of this legislation. In an interview with NBC News, Batta revealed how she was sold as a child-bride at the age of 11 to a 47-year-old man. During her marriage Batta was repeatedly beaten & raped by her husband & eventually divorced. Sadly, she found no support from her family due to the region’s “Honor/Shame” cultural mentality in which Batta’s divorce from her husband was viewed as bringing shame on the family.
Batta’s life came to an end in 4th grade when her father against the objections of her mother, decided to sell her to a 47-year-old man for $11,300. The next thing she knew, Batta was taken from her school, told by her father to dress nicely, then taken away & married off to her husband. Batta recalled being beaten for the slightest infraction, such as watching TV without permission & further stated that her husband treated his servants better than he treated her. At the age of 14, Batta’s husband grew tired of her, & divorced her. Shunned by her family, Batta ultimately ran away from home at age 16. Batta warns that this law, known as “Iraq’s Personal Status Law,” would essentially give a child’s parents the right to sell her into marriage, and she knows all too well, that many children will face the same abuse that she faced and this in turn will lead to these children being left in a helpless situation.
Sadly, Batta’s case is far from unique. In a report by UNICEF in April of 2023, it is estimated that throughout the world approximately 28% of girls are married before the age of 18. It is especially bad in Islamic nations due to a mixture of poverty, culture, & religious belief. Impoverished families at times feel that the only recourse that have in escaping poverty & reducing the number of children that they have to care for is to marry off their children for a payment. Such was the fate that befell Nujood Ali of Yemen, who was married against her will at the age of nine to a man in his 30’s. In her memoir, Nujood revealed that her family’s poverty coupled with her father’s inability & at time, unwillingness to obtain steady employment led him to sell her into marriage. For young girls whose family lives in poverty, the temptation to sell them into marriage is great, especially when the society fails to pass laws to protect them but instead passes laws that encourage the tragic practice. One of the other tragic realities that many don’t want to face is the fact that the Islamic religion permits this practice. Under Islamic Law, wives must be completely subordinate to their husbands. Husbands have authority to beat their wives if they displease him (Surah 4:34). 90% of Pakistani women are reported to have been beaten for a variety of reasons (cooking an unsatisfactory meal or giving birth to a daughter). The nation of Chad tried to outlaw wife beating, and Islamic clerics deemed the bill to be un-Islamic. Muhammad’s blunt words on marriage and the role of women are what they are. In her lifetime, a Muslim woman is never to be without the guardianship of a man, & are forbidden from traveling alone or to be alone with a non-relative male.
Muhammad, the founder of the faith, had a child-bride named Aisha whom he married when she was six while he was in his 50’s. Islamic sources also revealed that Muhammad consummated his marriage with Aisha when she was nine. Due to this fact, many in the Islamic faith therefore believe that child marriage is acceptable as Muhammad is not only the founder, but considered to be the living embodiment of the Islamic Faith. When Nujood’s parents argued over whether or not to marry her off, her father stated that because Muhammad consummated the marriage with Aisha at the age of nine, then Allah must deem this an acceptable practice. The culture, which is also intertwined with the Islamic faith, also plays a significant role in this tragedy. Wafa Sultan, a former Muslim from Syria, testified how her niece who was 10 was forced to marry her cousin, who was in his 40’s. Her niece continually begged her father to save her, but he refused, saying it was shameful to disobey her husband and her obedience would be rewarded in Paradise. At the age 25, Wafa Sultan’s niece committed suicide by setting herself on fire. In both of these horrific cases, the father’s of the family who forced their daughters into a marriage they never wanted, justified doing so by Muhammad’s teachings & actions.
Child Marriage in Philadelphia Mosque
What makes this even more tragic is the reality that immigrants to the West from Islamic regions of the world are bringing this practice with them. Islamic child marriages are now taking place in Western nations as well. In the City of Philadelphia, it came to public knowledge that the Masjid Uthman Dan Fodiyo Mosque in Philadelphia was engaged in performing Islamic child marriages, and similar reports have come out from various Western Nations. Many Muslims who immigrate to the West believe that Sharia Law should override any other laws of the nations in which they reside. This results them in engaging in Islamic practices like child marriage despite the fact that they’re considered illegal in Western countries. Presently, many in the Islamic community are divided on this practice. Intisar al-Mayali, a human rights activist and a member of the Iraqi Women’s League, said passage of this law by Iraq “will leave disastrous effects on the rights of women and girls, through the marriage of girls at an early age, which violates their right to life as children, and will disrupt the protection mechanisms for divorce, custody and inheritance for women.”
This division comes primarily from Muslims who are influenced by worldviews other than Sharia & Islam. However, if we go solely by Muhammad’s views & actions, upon which Islam is based and on which fundamentalist Muslims believe society should be built upon, it is very much possible that this law will become official in Iraq. If this happens, more young girls in Iraq will endure what girls like Batta & Nujood have had to endure. The question one should ask now is “When are the ‘Feminists’ of the West going to stop remain silence on issues like this & start standing against it?
Sources:
Abdul-Zahra, Qassim and Stella Martany. “Iraqi Lawmakers Pass a Bill that Critics Say Legalizes Child Marriage.” Associated Press. Jan. 21, 2025. Accessed from https://apnews.com/article/iraq-child-marriage-law-1566334b53e15c3c456b0ffa94d03c1f.
Ali, Nujood & Delphine Minoui. I Am Nujood, Age 10 and Divorced. New York: Broadway Paperbacks, 2010.
Gabriel, Bridget. Because They Hate: A Survivor of Islamic Terror Warns America. New York: St. Martin’s Griffin, 2006.
Gabriel, Bridget. They Must be Stopped: Why We Must Defeat Radical Islam & How We Can Do It. New York: St. Martin’s Griffin, 2009.
Gabriel, Mark. Jesus and Muhammad: Profound Differences and Surprising Similarities. Lake Mary, FL: FrontLine, 2004.
King, Jeff. Islam Uncensored. 2011.
Mondon, Marielle. “Alleged Sexual Assault Victim Claims she was Married Underage at Philadelphia Mosque.” PhillyVoice. March 15, 2019. Accessed from https://www.phillyvoice.com/philadelphia-mosque-alleged-underage-marriage-sexual-assault/
Pradelli, Chad. “Exclusive: Sex Allegations Lead to Child Bride Investigation at Philly Mosque.” ABC News. March 14, 2019. Accessed from https://6abc.com/sex-allegations-lead-to-child-bride-investigation-at-philly-mosque/5194053/.
Razak, Khalid. “Iraq Could Allow Marriage for Girls as Young a 9. A Survivor Says it would Fuel Rape and Child Abuse.” NBC News. Dec. 15, 2024. Accessed from https://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/iraq-child-marriage-girls-personal-status-law-change-clerics-rcna180968.