Five new judges in Israel’s Muslim sharia court system are sworn in today at the President’s Residence in Jerusalem.
The group includes Israel’s first female qadi, or sharia judge, Hana Khatib, who drew praise from President Reuven Rivlin.
Khatib is from the town of Tamra, located in the lower Galilee. She practices family and sharia law, according to an online advertisement for her firm.
Sharia courts in Israel deal with personal status issues for the Muslim community, such as marriage, divorce, conversion, inheritance and prevention of domestic violence.
They have existed in what is now Israel since early Ottoman times and through the British Mandate, and were recognized by the State of Israel upon its founding in 1948.
— Dov Lieber contributed
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Monday, May 15, 2017
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