Mufti on PA TV explains how to discipline a wife: “Rebuke her, forsake her in bed, beat her – [use] a small brush or a handkerchief, and the number of blows should not exceed 10”

Official PA TV program Life, hosting academic lecturer on Islam and Mufti Sheikh Samih Hajjaj, on the family and relationships:

Academic lecturer on Islam and Mufti Sheikh Samih Hajjaj: “A man wanted to take revenge on [his] wife so he locked her in the bathroom. She is from a respectable family and he locked her up for 25 days. In the morning he would give her pita bread, a plate of red pepper, and a beating with a rubber pipe. In the evening he would give her a plate of red pepper, pita bread, and a beating with a rubber pipe. For 25 days. On the 25th day he didn’t pay attention and left the bathroom door open, may Allah protect us all. She fled to her parents’ home. ‘Why did you do this, sir?’ He said: ‘Didn’t you read the Quran? Allah said: “But those [wives] from whom you fear arrogance - [first] advise them; [then if they persist], forsake them in bed; and [finally], strike them”’ ... Even if he had acted gradually, he did not have to beat her in this way. ‘[First] advise them.’ Let’s say that a husband senses that his wife is lying. First he needs to rebuke her and quote the Quran and Hadith on the ban on lying. If that does not work, he need to forsake her in bed... The [Muslim] scholars said that the beating can be with a small brush or a handkerchief, and the number of blows should not exceed 10.”

TV host: “Not with a stick or a pipe.”

Mufti: “No, no. Not in the face. Even when we hit with a handkerchief or small brush, Prophet [Muhammad] said: ‘Do not hit the face, and do not make her ugly.’ If you want to hit, hit [her] back or leg, hit in places that are not seen, and do not cause a permanent mark... Prophet [Muhammad] did not hit a single man, woman, or child, other than during Jihad for Allah. If your role model is the Prophet, it would be better if you did not hit at all. Aside from that, this [man was] beating for revenge. The beating, according to Islam, is only to convey a message to the wife: ‘I am angry with you.’ That’s all.”