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The question

Is divorce effective if the husband explicitly and intentionally writes the word of divorce to his wife, then tears up the letter or deletes it electronically? And does anything take effect if the husband searches on Google for the phrase "I told my wife, 'Go marry someone else'" without intending to effect a divorce?

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Source: FtawySummary from Ftawy's records · added here Sep 2, 20261 min readAlso available in العربية
The answer

For a divorce to occur through writing, it is stipulated that the writing must be clear and unambiguous, and attributed to the wife.

The Hanafis have a detailed view regarding the condition of it being a formal document.

If the husband writes a clear divorce statement to his wife, intending to effectuate it, it takes place whether he tears the writing or erases what he wrote. This is because divorce by writing is considered one of theʽ kinayat (ambiguous expressions) of divorce, and it occurs if intended, regardless of whether it reaches the wife or not. The waiting period () begins from the moment it is written.

As for writing "I said to my wife, 'Go and marry,'" with the intention of inquiring about its ruling, no divorce occurs by it due to the absence of intention.

Summary from Ftawy's records · added here

Reviewed by El Fatwa's sharia committee.

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Where this answer came from
Source platform
Ftawy
Original fatwa ID
112449
Added here
. This is when the answer was added to El Fatwa, not the fatwa's date.
Text
Summary from Ftawy's records, reviewed by El Fatwa's sharia committee.
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Read the full answer on Ftawy