RAMALLAH, West Bank — Mohammed Talib and his fiancee Zanin Samara, from Beit Ur al-Fauqa in Ramallah, and their families did not seem surprised at the sight of a woman preparing to marry them in the Ramallah Sharia court on Sept. 30.

Tahrir Hamad, from Silwad, just northeast of Ramallah, is the first female Sharia marriage judge in Palestine. On July 23 the Supreme Judicial Council licensed her to conduct marriages. Some social and religious groups welcomed the news, while others opposed it.

Talib graduated with a sociology degree from Birzeit University. He did not object to a woman officiating his marriage. Before the ceremony, he told Al-Monitor, “I have absolutely no objection to a woman marrying us as long as there is no Sharia or legal objection to that.”

For her part, Samara, a media graduate from Birzeit University, praised the appointment of a woman to the post of first marriage judge and considered it a positive step. She told Al-Monitor, “This is a good step that proves there are no differences between men and women in professional positions. It also encourages women to play their role in society.”