What is the Sharia ruling regarding a man who swore by triple divorce to his wife that she must leave and not return except with his permission, then swore that he would not come to take her, then gave her the choice between returning or the divorce taking effect if she did not return, knowing that she did not return based on the first oath, and that this is the final divorce? Does the divorce take effect, or is expiation obligatory?

The majority of scholars hold that swearing by divorce and making it conditional upon an act results in divorce if the condition is breached, and that pronouncing divorce thrice counts as three divorces. Based on this, this wife has been divorced once because she did not return before 12 o'clock, once because her husband went to bring her back, and a third time when she reached the house without him going to her. Thus, she has become irrevocably divorced from him (baynunah kubra), and she is not lawful for him again until she marries another husband.

However, Sheikh Al-Islam Ibn Taymiyyah is of the opinion that if swearing by divorce is not intended to effect divorce but rather for threat or emphasis, then its ruling is that of an oath by Allah, requiring an expiation for an oath (kaffarat yamin) if the condition is breached, and divorce does not occur. He also holds that pronouncing divorce thrice counts as a single divorce. Therefore, if the husband did not intend to effect divorce with those oaths, he may take his wife back, divorce does not occur, and he is liable for two expiations for oaths.

This issue has details and differences of opinion among scholars. It is best to present it to a trustworthy scholar whom the questioner can consult directly in her country. One must be cautious about swearing by divorce, as it is among the oaths of the wicked.