Aguna
The term aguna, literally translating to "chained woman," refers to a woman who is denied a get (religious divorce) by her husband, as per Jewish law.
In Judaism, to get divorced, a woman bust be granted a get by her husband of his own free will. This has become an increasingly problematic issue due to it seemingly giving men all the power and leverage in the divorce proceedings.
Many methods have been proposed to try and make men give their wives get to prevent this from becoming an issue, but this has seen mixed results due to anything perceived as coercion invalidating the get.
Without a get, a woman becomes an aguna, since she is essentially "chained," unable to remarry.
The 'unspoken agunot': The wives of men whose deaths by Hamas were never confirmed - opinion
In contrast to the victim of get-refusal, the war widows desperately wanted to stay with their husbands. They became agunot due to evil forces from without.
IDF soldiers’ wives at risk: The urgent case for conditional divorces
Divorce refusal will only be solved if everyone does their part - opinion
Prominent US Rabbi: Sex strike against divorce refusal 'destructive'
Chief Rabbi David Lau establishes special rabbinical court to support agunot affected by war
An agunah is a woman unable to be divorced by her husband. During the Israel-Hamas war such cases have become noticeable enough to warrant rabbinical intervention.
Yad La'isha: Jerusalem center fighting trapped marriages
Also known as “The Aguna Warrior,” Yad La'isha director Pnina Omer and her Jerualem-based organization fight to free women in trapped marriages.
In Israel, a crumb of bread is valued more than a woman's life - opinion
They simply do not view the people they judge as equal before the law, in fact, the opposite: they actively discriminate against women and frequently the non-religious.
This week in Jerusalem: A hope and a prayer
A weekly round-up of city affairs.
Change Jewish marriage methods to free agunot - opinion
Management of iggun assumes that agunah is a necessary, inevitable, unending fact of life. But iggun is not a law of math or terrestrial physics. It is literally, man-made and can and must be unmade.
London judge jails get-refusing ex-husband
Among other abuses against his ex-wife, Alan Moher refused to grant her a Jewish divorce (get).
Aguna Day: 274 sanctions issued against get refusers in 2021
The courts arranged a divorce from 134 husbands in the former USSR, Europe, North America, South America, Africa and Asia, in 2021.
The get-refusal problem should have been solved more than 30 years ago - opinion
One in five women is refused a get from her ex-husband when they divorce, making it impossible for her to remarry.
Chained woman finally freed from marriage after near 14-year struggle
Her ex-husband had managed to hide from law enforcement for seven years until a private investigations firm arrested him in a targeted manhunt.
Two rabbis oppose the prenup that prevents women from becoming agunot
the two rabbis attacking prenuptial agreements this week are part of the Chief Rabbinate of Israel.
Fighting ‘get’ refusal is a vital task we must all confront
In fact, the institution of a get was biblically initiated as part of a series of laws to preclude spousal abuse – the first laws of this nature in human history.
