Cousin Marriage: Allah is responsible for miseries of disabled children

Islamist Excuse: First-cousin marriage does not bring much danger. 

Our Response:

•  Islamic Allah is not only responsible for cousin marriages but also responsible for cousin marriages extending Multiple Generations, resulting in indeed various genetic diseases affecting innocent children. 
• Additionally, the "sex-segregated" system imposed by Islamic teachings makes it nearly impossible for young boys and girls to interact and get to know each other, leading to a continued pattern of cousin marriages across multiple generations.

Actually, there is no all-knowing Allah present in the heavens. And Muhammad was making the Revelations on his own. Since Muhammad was only a human (and not all-knowing), he also didn't know about the harms of cousin marriages.

In the absence of this knowledge, Muhammad found no problem in accepting the ancient Arab custom of marriage with cousins and extending it to multiple generations. 

Based on two reports by BBC (Report1 & Report 2):

• It is estimated that at least 55% of British Pakistanis marry their cousins, and this practice persists into the second generation.
• According to statistics, British Pakistanis are 13 times more likely to have children with genetic disorders than the general population of Britain.
• In Birmingham city, 10% of children born to first cousins either die in infancy or develop severe disabilities due to recessive genetic disorders.
• Although the Pakistani community comprises only 3% of all births in Britain, they account for 33% of all British children with such disabilities. This means that if 55% of British Pakistanis have cousin marriages, then the 1.5% population of Britons who engage in first cousin marriages accounts for 33% of all British children with genetic disorders. [Source:  Paper by Darr and Modell published in 2002 - Genetic Counselling and customary consanguineous marriage. Nature Reviews: Genetics, Vol 3 March 2002]

According to the DAWN Newspaper (Pakistan):

1. The Universities of Bradford and Leeds together did a study in Pakistan. According to this study, 77% of all disabled Pakistani children were born due to cousin marriages. 
2. In the city of Charsadda (Pakistan), 90% of people marry their cousins. Consequently, every third family has had a disabled child with genetic disorders for the past 40 years. While the people of this city are aware of the reasons behind these issues, the practice of marrying cousins continues due to the influence of the religion of Islam.

According to the "The News" newspaper (Pakistan):

1. Cousin marriages in Pakistan account for 73 per cent, leading to the country having the largest community of deaf children worldwide.

2. The estimated number of people suffering from genetic diseases in Pakistan ranges between 14 to 16 million, with 1.6 million mutations identified in the country.

Autism: Muslim countries have the highest rates

Reference:

• World Population Review (2020)
• World Population Review (2021)
• World Population Review (2022)
• World Population Review (2023)

Religious Indoctrination Triumphs Over Awareness:

A recent scientific Study (which was done even on a bigger scale) reported (link) that this trend of cousin marriages has further increased in the British Pakistani community in recent years. It happened despite spreading awareness about the dangers of cousin marriages.

This simply means that awareness was defeated at the hands of religious indoctrination. 

So, what are the alternatives?

• Do we allow this situation to persist, subjecting innocent children to the severe consequences of genetic disorders and enduring a lifetime of suffering?
• Or do we take action to mitigate this extreme human suffering by implementing laws alongside awareness campaigns?

It's evident that children born with genetic disorders endure significant pain throughout their lives. If politicians truly prioritize human welfare, they must empathize with the immense suffering of these innocent children. They should not fear accusations of Islamophobia or political backlash. Instead, they should prioritize humanity above all else and make the morally sound decision. 

Proof: Cousin Marriage is indeed Incest

For centuries, in Muslim families, marriages between first cousins have been taking place generation after generation. That is, in every generation, some first cousins end up marrying each other. According to science, with such continuous cousin marriages in each generation, the proportion of shared genes keeps increasing.

Science is clear that first cousins share, on average, 12.5% of their genes. This is the same proportion as between a grandparent and grandchild. Calling a cousin marriage a “normal marriage” is, in reality, self-deception. From a scientific perspective, such a relationship is as incestuous as a grandfather with his granddaughter or a grandmother with her grandson.

The real danger increases over time. If cousins continue to marry within the family across generations:

• By the fourth generation, cousins share 25% of their genes, the same as half-siblings. Marriages at this stage are equivalent to unions between step-siblings, and the risk of genetic diseases and disabilities in their children multiplies significantly.

• By the eighth generation, cousins can share 50% of their genes, the same proportion found between full siblings or between parents and children. Such marriages are, in effect, the genetic equivalent of direct incest, with children facing severe health risks.

Double Cousins: The Greatest Risk

In Islam, marriage between “double first cousins” is also considered permissible. This occurs when two brothers marry two sisters. Their children—double cousins—already share 25% of their genes from the very first generation, scientifically equivalent to half-siblings.

If this pattern continues:

• By the second generation, the risks to children multiply.

• By the third generation, the shared genes reach 50%, the same as between parents and children or full siblings.

In other words, third-generation double cousin marriages are scientifically equivalent to incest between a mother and son or a brother and sister. Children born from such unions face extremely high risks of birth defects and incurable diseases.

Science shows that children born from such unions are at a much higher risk of:

• Congenital heart defects

• Mental retardation and intellectual disabilities

• Genetic disorders such as thalassemia

• Impaired vision and hearing

• Even premature death

Research from the UK, Pakistan, and the Middle East confirms that mortality and disability rates among children in cousin-marriage families are far higher than in the general population.

This is not merely a matter of “religious permission”; it is about the health and survival of human lives and generations. No matter what name it is given, incest always leads to the same outcomes: diseases, disabilities, and broken lives.

Shared Genes Across Generations

Double First Cousins

Why have cousin marriages become more problematic for Muslims in the present era compared to the past?

In the past centuries, cousin marriages did not pose such a serious challenge for Muslims due to various factors:

1. Aggressive Conquests: In the past, Muslims engaged in aggressive wars, capturing women from other nations, and fathering many children through such encounters.
2. Slave Trade: Muslims would purchase slave women from markets and maintain large harems with multiple slave wives.
3. Polygamy: The practice of polygamy was common, leading to multiple marriages, and many of these unions were not with cousins.

These factors contributed to a situation where Muslim societies were not as severely impacted by the health risks associated with cousin marriages.

However, circumstances have changed in the present era:

1. End of Slavery: Slavery has already been abolished, and the practice of purchasing slave women has ceased.
2. Decline of Aggressive Wars: Muslims no longer engage in offensive wars, resulting in the inability to capture non-Muslim women.
3. Reduced Polygamy: The practice of polygamy has diminished, and Muslims now have limited opportunities to choose life partners, often leading to them selecting their cousin sisters as the first and only choice.

As a result, cousin marriages have become a significant concern for Muslims in the present era.

Furthermore, Islamic teachings on hijab and modesty have contributed to the creation of a relatively isolated family system, where young boys and girls have limited interactions with each other outside of their immediate families, with the exception of interactions between cousins. This limited social interaction often leads to feelings developing between cousin boys and girls. The close-knit family system, shaped by Islamic teachings, has contributed to the prevalence of cousin marriages in Islamic societies. For many Muslim women, marrying a familiar figure, such as a cousin, can be seen as a more comfortable and secure option than marrying a complete stranger.

Adam, Eve, and Human Genes: A Story Confronted by Scientific Reality

Think… if the Islamic story were completely true, and Eve was really created from Adam’s rib, then today’s humans should have been born sharing 100% of their genes with each other.

First came Adam and Eve. They shared 100% of their genes (as Eve came from Adam's ribs), and then generations grew from them. This is clearly the extreme of incest.

Then their sons and daughters were born. If they too married among themselves, every generation would have zero genetic diversity.

Today’s humans, who live in every corner of the world, do not share 100% of their genes with each other. Every human is unique, every genetic code is different.

This fact, proven in every laboratory and genetic study, clearly shows that the Islamic story, in which Eve was created from Adam’s rib and generations arose from that, is scientifically and genetically impossible.

This is not just an academic issue, but a powerful confirmation of human logic and reality.

Strange Islam: Breastfeeding milk makes a person unlawful to marry, but cousin incest marriages does not

This religion is full of human errors, which themselves serve as proof that no Allah exists in the heavens.

One such error is that Muhammad permitted first-cousin marriages—clearly an incestuous union—but on the other hand, he committed another human error: if a woman breastfeeds a child five times, then her daughters become that child’s sisters, and marrying them becomes forbidden.

In the light of modern science, drinking breast milk five times does not alter the child’s genes in any way, nor does marrying a so-called milk-sister cause any genetic disease. This was simply an ignorant Arab custom, which Islam continued. If an all-knowing, all-wise Allah truly existed, such a scientifically baseless rule would not have been included in Islam.

Islamic scholars argue that five breastfeeding sessions create “emotional attachment,” and therefore the ruling is correct. The truth is that while a child may develop some emotional bond with a breastfeeding mother, this bond does not extend to her daughters. Emotional attachment only forms if the child grows up in the household and regards the daughters as literal sisters from childhood.

Another objection to Islamic logic is that it removes emotional bonds where they truly exist, but forbids marriage based on five breastfeeding sessions where no real bond exists.

For example, if a woman adopts a child and raises them as her own (but does not breastfeed five times), the child becomes forbidden for the adoptive mother at the age of Islamic puberty (12 or 13 years) and must leave the household because, according to Allah, a “third presence” (the devil) now exists between them.

Moreover, according to Islamic law, an adoptive father can marry his adopted daughter, and this is considered fully Halal (permissible). He does not even need her consent if she is a minor child. 

On the other hand, if a child has never seen or developed any bond with the daughters of a woman who breastfed him five times, Islam forbids marriage with them. According to Islamic logic, the heavens are shaken and the earth trembles because this is considered incest.

So how can Islamist scholars claim that this law is based on “emotional attachment” in any reasonable sense?

First Excuse by Islamists: Dismissing Science as Unreliable

Islamic Preachers, unfortunately, deceive both Muslims and non-Muslims by claiming that science cannot be trusted because it changes over time. In doing so, they deliberately confuse "scientific hypotheses" with "scientific facts/laws".

While it is true that scientific hypotheses may evolve or prove incorrect based on experimental evidence, some findings have solidified into "Scientific Facts/Laws" that are not subject to change. For instance, the fact that the Earth is a sphere, not flat, is firmly established and will not alter. Similarly, the link between cousin marriages and disabled children with genetic disorders has been scientifically proven, and this fact remains steadfast.

Regrettably, the value of "Scientific Facts" still pales in comparison to the overpowering influence of "Blind Belief" fostered by religious indoctrination.

Second Excuse by Islamists: Propagating Fabricated Ahadith

Certain Muslim apologists engage in spreading Ahadith that discourages marrying close relatives. However, it is crucial to note that these Ahadith are fabricated and cannot be found in any authentic Hadith books of Muslims. To illustrate this deception, let us reference a quote from a Muslim website itself (link):

Question: Did the Prophet (peace be upon him) discourage marrying relatives (ie. cousins) even though it is lawful?

Answer:

The short answer is that there are certain narrations that discourage marrying cousins, yet experts of hadith verification have determined them to be extremely weak or fabricated.

The Narrations in Question

– “Do not marry within the family [i.e., cousins], as that leads to children that are thin and weak.”

– “Do not marry within the family [i.e., cousins], since the child would be born thin and weak.”

– “Marry outside the family, lest the offspring be thin and weak.” [Ibn Hajar, Talkhis al-Habir]

Regarding these and similar narrations, the 7th century hadith specialist Ibn Salah said, “I found no reliable basis for them.” Many eminent hadith masters mentioned his statement and concurred, such as Ibn Hajar al-Asqalani, Ibn Mulaqqin, and others. [Ibn Hajar, Talkhis al-Habir; Ibn Mulaqqin, Khulasat al-Badr]

Taj al-Subki said regarding these narrations, “I found no chain of transmission (isnad) for them.” [Subki, Ahadith al-Ihya Alati La Asla Laha]

Hence it can be concluded that these narrations — as statements of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) — are fabricated.

After mentioning Ibn Salah’s verdict, Hafiz Iraqi does state that it was rather Sayyidina Umar who made such a statement, specifically in response to a certain family/tribe whose offspring were thin and weak. He said, “You all have become thin and weak, so marry outside the family.” [Iraqi, Takhrij Ahadith al-Ihya’]

Thus, there is no Hadith from Muhammad that discourages marrying within the family.

In fact, the historical accounts present a different scenario:

• Muhammad himself fell in love with his first cousin Umm Hani, who happened to be the daughter of Abu Talib. However, Abu Talib declined the marriage proposal as Muhammad was not only poor but also lacked skills to earn a living. Consequently, Abu Talib did not consider Muhammad to be suitable enough to marry his daughter (link).
• Subsequently, Muhammad went on to marry Zainab bint Jahsh, who was his cousin-sister. 

Regarding Umar's statement, it's important to note that he neither held the authority of Allah nor was he a prophet, thus his words do not constitute a part of Sharia.

Umar's suggestion was based on a common observation from ancient times that marrying strong women tended to produce stronger offspring, while marrying weak women led to weaker children. Consequently, when Umar noticed that the tribe of al-Sa'ib was becoming physically weaker, he specifically advised them to marry individuals who were more intelligent and stronger than themselves (had the people of al-Sa'ib been stronger, Umar would not have made this suggestion to them). Therefore, this was an exceptional case and not a general recommendation in Islamic Sharia. Sharia does not have a universal mandate to marry outside the family.

Furthermore, some Muslim apologists present the following argument (link):

عن الشافعي قال: أيما أهل بيت لم يخرج نساؤهم إلى رجال غيرهم كان في أولادهم حمق. 

Al-Shafi’i said, “Whenever the people of a household do not allow their women to marry men outside of their line, there will be fools among their children.”

Once more, it is important to clarify that this saying attributed to al-Shafi'i is not a part of Sharia. Instead, it reflects a common observation among people during that era that marrying within the family could lead to health issues in the offspring. As a matter of fact, even Ibn Hajar al-Asqallani, another renowned Muslim scholar, rejected its inclusion in Islamic Sharia, and he wrote (link):

وأما قول بعض الشافعية يستحب أن لا تكون المرأة ذات قرابة قريبة فإن كان مستندا إلى الخبر فلا أصل له أو إلى التجربة وهو أن الغالب ان الولد بين القريبين يكون أحمق

The saying of some Shafi'i scholars suggests that it is preferable for a woman not to be closely related in kinship. However, this is not based on Hadith, it has no basis, and it is only be based on observation, which assumes that children born from close relatives tend to be less intelligent.

Therefore, Islamic Sharia does not offer any recommendation to avoid incestuous marriages with cousins.

Third Excuse by Islamists: Genetic Testing is Enough and Cousin Marriages Should Not Be Banned

Today, Islamic apologists claim that:

Cousin marriages should not be banned as genetic testing corrects the risk of cousin marriages. 

Response:

Would Muslims allow marriage between siblings and Uncle/Niece too if such genetic tests approve it?

The rate of shared common genes among close relatives is as follows:

• Siblings: 50% shared genes
• Uncle/Niece: 25% shared genes
• Siblings (who share only one common parent): 25% shared genes
• First Cousins: 12.5% shared genes

Unfortunately, people who are carriers of genetic diseases have no family history of recessive genetic conditions. The absence of family history does NOT decrease risk.

And unfortunately, there is no way to test for absolutely everything. Some recessive genetic conditions are extremely rare and potentially exclusive to your family that a normal carrier screening panel cannot detect.

Comprehensive genetic testing could not identify the cause. This means they would not have tested positive on carrier screening. This also means we cannot test future pregnancies to see if they are affected, we just have to monitor with ultrasound and see what happens knowing that there is a 25% risk in each pregnancy. It’s very likely that the couple carries one of these very rare genetic changes that is unique to their family and that we are unable to detect with our current technology.

Conclusion: 

There is no All-Knowing Allah present in the heavens; rather, it was Muhammad himself who established this religion based on his own beliefs and practices. He adhered to the traditions of the ignorant Arabs during that era. Consequently, for all the innocent children born with genetic disorders as a result of cousin marriages (extending multiple generations), Muhammad bears responsibility for their suffering.

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