Tribal chief asks for 25-cent dowry for daughter

A Saudi tribe chief surprised the two bridegrooms marrying his two daughters when he asked them to pay a dowry of only SRone (25 cents) for each bride, a newspaper in the Gulf Kingdom reported on Th8rsday.

Sheikh Hussein bin Mohammed al Faqih, a tribal chieftain in the southern Saudi province of Asir, said he had already asked for the same dowry for the marriage of four other daughters in recent years.

“I asked for this token dowry only after I consulted with my daughters,” he said, quoted by the Arabic language daily Alwatan.

“I only wish other fathers will follow suit because demanding high dowries will only put a heavy financial burden on the husbands of our daughters and this could cause marital trouble.”

Dowries, the money paid by men to their brides under Islamic law, have sharply risen in the Gulf following the discovery of oil. In some cases, dowries and other wedding costs exceed $one million.

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