Is a divorce issued by a civil court in a non-Islamic country considered religiously valid, and is it permissible for the woman to marry after it, knowing that the husband had taken her back (to his marital bond) in absentia before the end of her waiting period, after he had divorced her for the first time?

Sharia courts, or those acting on their behalf, adjudicate marital disputes. A husband has no right to prevent his wife from marrying, and such an act is a mockery of Allah's verses. His manner of treating her constitutes a major sin, and it is not permissible to obey him in this regard. The wife has the right to seek divorce due to harm, and the husband is not entitled to compensation in a khul' (dissolution of marriage) if the harm originated from him. If the husband accepts compensation from his wife in exchange for ending the marriage bond, the khul' takes effect. The sister should have resorted to the Islamic center. It is permissible to resort to secular courts when it is the only means to reclaim a right or repel injustice in a country not governed by Sharia, provided that the Sharia ruling is determined by scholars. Civil divorce does not terminate a marriage Islamically unless after consulting Islamic centers.