Does a divorce count if the husband says to his wife: "If you leave the house now, you are divorced," and he did not intend divorce but rather intimidation, and then the wife opened the door and stood behind it and returned at the same moment without leaving the building?
Most scholars hold that a conditional divorce takes effect upon the fulfillment of the condition, whether the intention was to effect the divorce or merely to threaten it. This is the prevailing fatwa. However, Sheikh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyyah is of the view that if the husband did not intend to effect the divorce, it does not take effect, and he is obligated to offer an expiation for breaking an oath. If the wife exited through the door but did not leave the house, this is not considered leaving the house, unless the husband's intention was to prevent her from exiting absolutely, even through the door. In that case, he would have broken his oath and the divorce would take effect.
Summarized from the full answer at Ftawy · reviewed Sep 2, 2026
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