Afghan cleric defends 'marriage' to six-year-old girl by saying she was 'religious offering' to him

superbeets · Jul 31, 2016

[h=1]Afghan cleric defends 'marriage' to six-year-old girl by saying she was 'religious offering' to him[/h][FONT=&quot][FONT=&quot]'This girl does not speak, but only repeats one thing- ‘I am afraid of this man’, ' an official said[/FONT]
[/FONT]

superbeets · Jul 31, 2016

[FONT=&quot][/FONT]

Human rights groups say child marriages continue to take place in rural Afghanistan, despite being illegal iStock

superbeets · Jul 31, 2016

[FONT=&quot]An Afghan cleric has defended his marriage to a six-year-old girl, saying she was a “religious offering” to him.

[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]Mohammad Karim, who is believed to be in his sixties, was arrested after marrying the girl. He has told officials that he had been given the girl as a “religious offering” by her parents, Agence France-Presse reports.

[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]However, her parents reportedly claim she was abducted without their consent from the Herat province.

[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]He is being held by authorities in the central Ghor province, while investigations are underway.

[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]Head of the Women Affairs Department in Ghor, Masoom Anwari, said: “This girl does not speak, but only repeats one thing: ‘I am afraid of this man’.”

[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]The legal age for marriage in Afghanistan is 16 for women and 18 for men. However, child marriages continue to be common, particularly in rural areas.

[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]According to Afghan Ministry of Public Health research, among women aged 25-49 in Afghanistan, 53 per cent were married before the age of 18.[/FONT]

superbeets · Jul 31, 2016

[FONT=&quot]It is believed child marriage is partly responsible for the country’s unusually high maternal death rates, as young girls can die in childbirth if their bodies are not sufficiently developed to withstand labour. According to Human Rights Watch: “Child marriages expose girls to early pregnancy and childbirth, which entail significant risk of damaging consequences for girls and their children.

[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]“Women and girls in rural areas who do not have access to timely emergency obstetrics services are at particular risk of developing fistula… a hole in a woman or girl’s birth canal caused by labour that is prolonged.” [/FONT]

superbeets · Jul 31, 2016

The muslim or otherwise apologists of Islam keep on peddling this view that majority of Muslims are "moderate", whatever that word may mean. I wonder if any one has ever come across a muslim who would agree with the the fact that Muhammad's marriage with Ayesha, who was SIX years old child constitutes the necessary and sufficient evidence that Muhammad was a pedophile. Quran in its chapter on divorce (Sura: Talaq), laid down the rules for divorcing the wives who have not yet started menstruating! What further evidence these 'moderate' muslims need to figure out that Islam has legitimised pedophilia. No wonder Islam has allowed men to beat their wives (Al-Nisa 4:34). It should be pointed out to 'Moderate Muslims', that by not condemning the egregious Quranic texts and Muhammad's pedophilia, they are helping the extremists to operate safely in 'Muslim Communities' in the the West and the East. They may be horrified at this suggestion, nevertheless it is true , that they are helping in legitimising the beliefs, that are simply abhorrent.

[FONT=&quot]smsaleem[/FONT]