Saudi to set minimum marriage age, without elaborating on that age

Riyadh - Saudi Arabia intends to set a minimum age for girls allowed to marry under a new law intended to curb child marriages following a surge in such a phenomenon in the conservative Gulf Kingdom. The ministry of justice is working on a regulation banning the marriage of female minors, most of which are forced by their fathers to marry much older men for dowry or other personal purposes, newspapers said. Ministry sources, quoted by Almadina and other local newspapers, said the law would be issued soon despite what they described as stiff opposition by some scholars who believe such a ruling violates Islamic law. “The law to set a minimum age for marriage is being drafted and will be issued soon,” one source said, without elaborating on that age. Officials in the world’s oil powerhouse said the law, the first in the region, would have to be endorsed by the country’s appointed parliament (Shura) and King Abdullah bin Abdul Aziz before it is enforced. Newspapers said early this year that Shura had already given the green light to the ministry of justice to draft legislation restricting child marriage. Shura gave no details of the proposed curbs but the law follows growing international criticism and recurrent calls by the local media to enforce tough rules against child marriage in the Moslem country. Full Story>>

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