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What is the ruling of Islamic law regarding the inheritance of a woman who died and left behind brothers from her mother's side (four daughters and one son), a full paternal cousin, and the children of another deceased full paternal cousin? Who is entitled to the inheritance, and what is the legal division in this matter?

1 min readAlso available in العربية

The distribution of the inheritance cannot be determined until the heirs are precisely and unambiguously identified. If the heirs are exclusively four maternal sisters, one maternal brother, one full paternal cousin, and the children of a full paternal cousin, and the deceased left no other heirs, then the maternal siblings receive one-third, to be divided equally among them. The remainder goes to the full paternal cousin by ta'sib (agnatic succession), and the children of the full paternal cousin receive nothing, as they are excluded by the presence of the full paternal cousin. Given the gravity of matters related to inheritance, it is advisable to present the case to the Sharia courts or to consult specialized scholars directly to verify all heirs, bequests, debts, and other rights before distributing the inheritance.

Summarized from the full answer at Ftawy · reviewed Sep 2, 2026

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