Forced divorce case in Saudi

This case has been reported several times in the Arab News. Here is a summary:

If the report mentions forced marriages as a cause for some of the suicide cases, the story published in the Arab News about Fatima, the woman who was forcibly divorced from her husband, makes the point clearer. It was reported that Fatima told a friend that she was considering suicide as she “can’t take this anymore”.

For those who are unaware of the case, Fatima’s tragedy began with her half-brothers objecting to what they considered her husband’s low tribal background. They asked a local court to divorce the couple even though they had been happily married for over two years and had children.

The judge agreed. The couple fled and were later arrested in Jeddah where they were seeking help from officials. Fatima and her children spent some time in a women’s prison and when she refused to go back to her family, the state sent her to the women’s shelter.

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This is a disgraceful situation. If the facts are known to the newspaper how is it that a higher judge with serious responsibility for Islamic morals and principles has not intervened and reunited the forcibly divorced couple?

I wondered the first time I read this and now I am tapping my foot with impatience.

Where in Islam does it say that greedy or snobby relatives can split apart a marriage, especially one WITH CHILDREN. What a shame for everyone involved. I do not know how judges can view themselves honorably with allowing this situation to happen in the first place, and to continue, especially so soon after Haj, when this should have been rectified in front of God.