Two hours after sending the message, Mr Darwash regretted his message and the couple went to court to determine whether or not they were in fact divorced.
Under Islamic Sharia law, a man can divorce his wife by a stating “I divorce thee” three times. If he makes the statement only twice, the husband can change his decision within three months. Women do not share this right. The Dubai court found that a text message is a valid means of communicating the statement.
Having had the case referred to them by the court, Islamic scholars assessed the validity of electronically communicated divorces by applying a four fold test. The husband should be the sender of the text message, and he must also want the divorce. In addition, the phrasing must be unambiguous and the wife must personally receive the text message.
Because Mr Darwash declared divorce only once before changing his mind, he and Mrs Darwash are still married.