Saudi woman divorces after husband injects her with drugs

A general court in the Saudi capital allowed a wife whose husband injected her with a drug to divorce him, Al-Watan daily reported.

The court granted her a khula, which occurs when a wife petitions a court for divorce without her husband's consent, in exchange for the dowry he paid her and forfeiting any claims to alimony.

The husband, in his 30s, injected his diabetic wife who is in her 20s with the drug while she was in a coma and later confessed to his act.

The wife, mother of a 2-year-old boy, filed a complaint with the general court that asked her to undergo laboratory tests to prove that she was injected with the drug.

The tests were positive and the court decided to grant khula to the wife, who has to pay back her husband a SR30,000 ($8,000) dowry.

Lawyer Bayan Zahran criticized the court for not treating the case as a criminal act.

She added the wife has the legal right to file a criminal case against her husband for injecting her with the drug.

Lawyer Ahmad Al-Muabbi said incidents of husbands committing criminal acts against their wives have increased recently, especially those involving drugs.

"Some men believe that it is part of manhood to treat their wives in a harsh manner, but this is against Shariah teachings," he said.

This article was first published in Saudi Gazette on Wednesday, Aug. 20, 2014.