What is the ruling on a husband who married a second wife without the knowledge of the first, and swore to the second, saying: "So-and-so is divorced, then divorced, then irrevocably divorced, with no possibility of return," without intending divorce; does his divorce take effect, and is it considered one divorce or three?

A husband must be just among his wives and capable of providing for them and cohabiting with them. He is not obligated to inform the first or second wife of his marriage, and no wife is permitted to demand the divorce of the other. As for a husband's statement to his second wife: "Divorced, then divorced, then divorced," this is considered an explicit divorce that does not require intention. According to the majority of scholars, three divorces have occurred, rendering his wife unlawful to him until she marries another man, consummates the marriage with him, and he then divorces her. However, the school of thought of Sheikh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyyah holds that only one divorce occurs.