Aslam

Praise be to Allah.The

one who has committed zina (fornication or adultery) has to repent,

because zina is one of the major sins which are forbidden in Islam and

for which a stern warning is issued to the one who does them. Allaah

says (interpretation of the meaning):

“And

those who invoke not any other ilaah (god) along with Allaah, nor kill

such person as Allaah has forbidden, except for just cause, nor commit

illegal sexual intercourse

and whoever does this shall receive the punishment.

The

torment will be doubled to him on the Day of Resurrection, and he will

abide therein in disgrace”

[al-Furqaan

25:68-69]

The

punishment must be carried out in this world on the one who has committed

zina (fornication or adultery), as Allaah says (interpretation of the

meaning):

“The

fornicatress and the fornicator, flog each of them with a hundred stripes.

Let not pity withhold you in their case, in a punishment prescribed

by Allaah, if you believe in Allaah and the Last Day. And let a party

of the believers witness their punishment”

[al-Noor

24:2]

It

was narrated in a hadeeth from the Prophet

(peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him): “Receive (teaching) from

me, receive (teaching) from me. Allaah has ordained a way for those

(women). When an unmarried male commits adultery with an unmarried female,

(they should receive) one hundred lashes and banishment for one year.

And in the case of a married male committing adultery with a married

female, they shall receive one hundred lashes and be stoned to death.”

(Narrated

by Muslim, al-Hudood, 3199).

Allaah

has forbidden the believers to marry a person who commits zina, whether

man or woman. Allaah says (interpretation of the meaning):

“The

adulterer — fornicator marries not but an adulteress — fornicatress

or a Mushrikah; and the adulteress –fornicatress, none marries her except

an adulterer — fornicater or a Mushrik [and that means that the man

who agrees to marry (have a sexual relation with) a Mushrikah (female

polytheist, pagan or idolatress) or a prostitute, then surely, he is

either an adulterer — fornicator, or a Mushrik (polytheist, pagan or

idolater). And the woman who agrees to marry (have a sexual relation

with) a Mushrik (polytheist, pagan or idolater) or an adulterer — fornicator,

then she is either a prostitute or a Mushrikah (female polytheist, pagan,

or idolatress)]. Such a thing is forbidden to the believers (of Islamic

Monotheism)”

[al-Noor

24:3]

If

the one who has committed zina repents to Allaah, truly and sincerely,

then Allaah will forgive him or her, and overlook the sin. Allaah says,

after mentioning the warning to those who commit zina:

“Except

those who repent and believe (in Islamic Monotheism), and do righteous

deeds; for those, Allaah will change their sins into good deeds, and

Allaah is Oft Forgiving, Most Merciful.

And

whosoever repents and does righteous good deeds; then verily, he repents

towards Allaah with true repentance”

[al-Furqaan

25:70-71 – interpretation of the meaning]

If

the person repents sincerely, then it becomes permissible for him or

her to get married, after they give up this sin.

Shaykh

Muhammad ibn Ibraaheem was asked about the ruling on getting married

to a woman who has committed zina. He said: “it is not permissible to

marry the woman who has committed adultery until she repents… if a man

wants to marry her, he has to be sure that she is not pregnant, by waiting

until she has a period before he does the marriage contract with her.

If she is pregnant, then it is not permissible for him to marry her

until she has given birth.”

See

al-Fataawa al-Jaami’ah li’l-Mar’ah al-Muslimah, 2/584