Turkey’s top religious body issues fatwa on divorce via communication devices

ISTANBUL

Turkey’s top religious body, the Directorate of Religious Affairs (Diyanet), has issued a fatwa on divorce, stating that couples may get divorced via telephone call, fax, letter, text message or internet.

“Divorcing your spouse by saying ‘talaq’ via phone call, letter, SMS, internet and fax are as valid as saying it to their face. However, in this situation, the husband should not deny the divorce. If a woman is divorced through written methods such as a text message or letter, she should ensure that the message was sent by her husband,” Diyanet said, responding to a question on its official website.

Triple “talaq,” as it is commonly called, is an Islamic practice where a man divorces a woman by saying the word “talaq,” the Arabic word for divorce, three times.

Previously, Diyanet issued a fatwa on hair dye, stating that dyeing men’s hair black is inappropriate according to Islam.

“Dyeing the hair, beard or mustache is permissible as long as the purpose is not to deceive people. But dyeing a man’s hair black is never permissible, according to Islamic rules. It is considered inappropriate,” it said in a statement.

Two weeks ago, Turkey’s top religious body also deemed the digital currency Bitcoin “inappropriate at this moment in time,” according to Islam.

Responding to a question about buying digital currencies such as Bitcoin and Ethereum for investment purposes, the Diyanet noted that digital currencies are not bound by a central authority and therefore lack the guarantee of a state or financial institution.