“Aida Touma-Sulaiman”, the deputy for the Join list and the head of the Knesset’s Women's Committee, revealed that 400 children under the age of 18 got married in 2017. She explained that more than 92% of the minors, who were married were Arabs, accusing the Israeli police of reluctance in confronting the phenomenon and implementing the law.
She also pointed out that 70% of the minors, who were married are Palestinians from the eastern part of the occupied “Al Quds”, highlighting that the crime of child marriage is due to several factors, notably poverty, religious background and the complicity of occupation.
The Knesset Research and Information Center published a report to the Committee for 2016-2017 on the number of marriages of underage girls, with 772 cases of minors’ marriage in 2016 and 672 cases in 2017, i.e. 1444 cases of minor marriages within two years.
Child marriage is a widespread phenomenon, despite the legal amendment that took place four years ago to raise the minimum age of marriage to 18 instead of 17.
According to the legal amendment, the marriage of a minor under the age of 18 is a criminal offense punishable by imprisonment for up to two years.
#Al-Quds #The_occupation #children’s_marriage
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