Marriage with 8 Year old Wife Terminated by Court

The marriage between an 8 year old girl and her 30 year old husband was terminated by a Yemeni court on Tuesday.  The marriage was ended as the wife had not reached puberty. 

The child’s family was ordered to pay $250 to the ex husband for compensation.

Human rights activist, and the girl’s lawyer, Shatha Nasser, says that the child originally filed a suit in April.  The young girl wanted a divorce due to the abuse she endured in the marriage.  She claimed to have been physically abused and forced to have “sex with him after hitting her.”

The court terminated the marriage instead of granting the girl a divorce in order to prevent the husband from attempting to reinstate the marriage.