Number of Saudi marriages drops by 3% in June

RIYADH — The Ministry of Justice has announced that the number of marriage in the country decreased by 3 percent in the month of June in comparison to the same month last year, Al-Watan newspaper reported.

The ministry also said it issued 4,321 divorce deeds over the past month, about half of them in Riyadh and Makkah provinces. The courts issued 215 to 342 divorce deeds a day.

It said 1,091 divorce deeds were issued in Makkah, 928 in Riyadh, 581 in the Eastern Province, 384 in Asir, 291 in Madinah, 237 in Qassim, 170 in Jazan, 159 in Tabuk, 139 in Hail, 117 in Jouf, 91 in Najran, 74 in the Northern Border Province and 59 in Baha.

The ministry reported that it approved a total of 12,407 marriage contracts, 92 percent of them between Saudi couples, in June. It said 39 percent of the marriage contracts were certified in Riyadh and Makkah. The number of marriage contracts per day ranged from 516 to 1,633.