What is the waiting period (iddah) for a woman who was divorced for harm (ḍarar) after her husband abandoned her for 13 years, knowing that she has reached menopause and her menstruation is intermittent?

If a husband did not divorce his wife during his absence, she is still his wife, and she is required to observe the iddah (waiting period) of divorce. As long as she menstruates, even if intermittently, she is not considered menopausal, and her iddah is reckoned by menstrual cycles, based on the Almighty’s saying: "Divorced women remain in waiting for three menstrual cycles." It is not permissible for a husband to abandon his wife without a legitimate Sharia-compliant reason. He must either retain her honorably or release her kindly.