Lebanese civil marriage pioneers Khouloud and Nidal on Nharkom Said

In an interview with LBCI’s Nharkom Said TV Show, newly-weds Nidal Darwish and Khouloud Souccariyeh said that they agreed to be the first to sign the contract of their civil marriage in Lebanon since they believe that "they belong to the Lebanese state and not to a sect." The couple confirmed that their families support their decision.  

In this context, Attorney Talal el-Husseini said that the Lebanese Constitution stipulates that each Lebanese citizen has the freedom of belief, emphasizing that the Lebanese civil courts are competent to look into civil marriage contracts.  

For his part, Interior Minister Marwan Charbel stated that the laws cannot be violated, revealing that he commissioned a number of judges to study the jurisprudence of the law to reach a positive result and register the marriage of Khouloud and Nidal.  

The member of the Supreme Islamic Council Sheikh Mohammad Anis Arwadi however criticized civil marriage, stressing that it contradicts the Islamic Sharia and “encourages Muslim women to marry non-Muslims and grant women the right to divorce.”