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Is it permissible for a Muslim man to marry a female disbeliever—specifically a Jewish woman—as a reciprocal act in response to disbelievers raping Muslim women? And what is the meaning of "what your right hands possess"? Does it include female captives of war? And is it permissible to marry them, and what is its legal basis?

1 min readAlso available in العربية

"What has been forbidden, such as adultery, sodomy, and alcohol, is not permissible for retribution. Therefore, it is not permissible for the wronged party to do to the aggressor what was done to them. The general principle is that whoever aggresses against us, it is permissible for us to aggress against them with the like of what they aggressed against us, as Allah Almighty said: (So whoever has transgressed against you, then transgress against him to the same extent of what he has transgressed against you), and He said: (And if you punish [an enemy], then punish with the like of that with which you were afflicted). However, what has been forbidden is outside the generality of these verses, and it is not permissible to exact retribution for it under any circumstances. Adultery and rape are not called marriage."

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

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