A personal status court in Khorfakkan has annulled the marriage of a foreign woman to her Gulf husband through a khula (divorce initiated by the wife), in exchange for waiving all her legal rights, including spousal support, waiting period, compensation, and deferred dowry, while confirming her custody of their child.
Specifically, the foreign woman filed a lawsuit requesting a ruling for khula from her husband and to establish custody of her child. This came after the court had previously rejected her divorce request on the grounds that her husband forbade her from going out with her friends, was addicted to alcohol, physically assaulted and insulted her, and that she was unable to prove her claims with clear evidence of harm that would make continuing the marriage impossible.
The wife demanded a divorce due to harm, custody of her son, and for her husband to pay the deferred dowry, pointing out that he had poor behavior towards her, frequently abused and insulted her, especially when intoxicated, and unjustifiably forbade her from social outings with her friends.
The husband, in response to the court, denied being an alcoholic and stated that he had not neglected his wife's rights. He argued that he provided suitable accommodation for both her and their son, who has special needs, and paid 3,000 dirhams monthly for their son's support based on a previous court ruling.
He maintained that their age difference and the issues raised by his wife for seeking divorce were due to her continuous demands to go out with her friends or bring them home. When he denied her these requests, she purportedly fabricated problems and filed for divorce due to harm, emphasizing that they have a son with special needs who requires a stable and calm family environment and that it was not justifiable to dissolve the family for such reasons. He reiterated that it was in their son's best interest to live with both parents, given his need for care, support, and upbringing.
The court summoned a witness provided by the wife to support her claim of the husband's alcohol addiction as evidence of harm. However, the court rejected his testimony, denied the harm-based divorce request, and mandated that she return to her husband’s home, ruling that she failed to prove harm with a medical report.
