PA Mufti confirms: Palestinian women must not contact Israeli police with complaints about spouses

Headline: “The Al-Aqsa Mosque preacher bans Jerusalem women from contacting the Israeli police and the [PA] mufti responds”

“Blessed Al-Aqsa Mosque preacher [and Head of the Supreme Muslim Council] Sheikh Ikrima Sabri has prohibited Jerusalem women from contacting the Israeli police, and especially with complaints against their spouses.

Sabri told [the independent Palestinian news agency] Donia Al-Watan: ‘The Jerusalem women must not contact the Israeli police to submit complaints against their spouses, especially when the police are attempting to separate spouses and destroy Palestinian families.’

Sabri explained that as long as the men are treating the women properly, [the women] must preserve the family and not contact the Israeli police for complaints.

Sabri added: ‘Female spouses must not contact the police because they [the police] encourage female spouses to contact the courts, and this destroys Palestinian families and scatters and separates the children. These are the dangers and disadvantages of submitting a complaint to the police.’

He continued: ‘The Israeli police encourage women to rebel against their spouses in order to break apart the family and the children.’

And in this context, [PA] Mufti of Jerusalem and the Palestinian Territories [and Palestinian Supreme Fatwa Council Chairman] Sheikh Muhammad Hussein responded to the Al-Aqsa Mosque mufti’s religious ruling, and emphasized that the gist of the law is that women should not contact the police centers because this has an impact on the family cohesion.

Sheikh Hussein said: ‘It is better to leave the matter to the good people and reliable figures [in our society] in order to deal with the issue, especially when contacting the police complicates matters and breaks apart the family.’”

Muhammad Hussein also serves as Deputy Secretary-General and acting Secretary-General of the PLO Popular National Conference of Jerusalem.