UAE Islamic Court, Wife Beating: United Arab Emirates Federal Supreme Court Okay if Leaves No Physical Marks (Cuts & Bruises)

The United Arab Emirates Federal Supreme Court has given official permission for men to beat their wives in line with Islamic tradition. A man may beat his wife and young children as long as the beating leaves no physical marks. This follows on the heels of prominent Islamic scholars who have voiced similar opinions. It might be pointed out that even in Western society wife beating was legal in some circumstances and locations in the United States for example until explicitly outlawed in 1870. The UAE ruling specifies that no physical marks may be left, though this leaves open questions of the degree that this entails. This is in contrast to a UAE case in which a man who left cuts & bruises on wife & adult daughter which was ruled criminal, specifically “guilty of harming” the women, but not of the disciplinary action itself.