Is the relationship between a man and a woman, which is approved by the people of a non-Islamic country and fulfills the conditions of acceptance, public declaration, and the guardianship of her family, considered a marriage, despite the absence of a civil contract? And what is the ruling regarding their inheritance in this case?

Scholars have differed regarding the marriages of disbelievers. Imam Malik held them to be invalid, whereas the majority of scholars viewed them as valid, citing Allah's statement: "And his wife, the carrier of firewood." Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyyah mentioned that the followers of Shafi'i and Ahmad believe that the ruling on the marriage of disbelievers depends on their customs: whatever they consider a valid marriage, they are affirmed in it, otherwise not. Accordingly, the relationships between women and men in disbelieving lands, if their people consider them to be a marriage, then they are a marriage according to the majority of scholars; otherwise, they are not.