Syrian city of Douma bans grooms from their own wedding parties

Grooms in the Syrian city of Douma have been banned from entering women-only wedding celebrations, with local authorities threatening legal action against men who turn up at their own brides' parties.

The decision by Douma City Council in the Damascus countryside prohibits "the groom entering women's celebrations in the halls of Douma city", according to a copy of the order published by the council.

It means that even the groom himself cannot enter the women's section of a wedding celebration.

In socially conservative parts of Syria, weddings are usually segregated by gender. However at the end of the women's party the groom usually enters to meet the bride and take her home.

The council warned that anyone violating the ban could face legal measures, although it did not specify what those measures would be or what penalties could be imposed.

The order was approved during a council meeting on 22 September but emerged publicly on Monday, prompting debate over why a local authority was regulating who could attend private wedding celebrations.

The council has not publicly explained the reason for the ban or when it will come into force.

Syrian fact-checking platform Ta'akkad said it contacted the council asking about the reasoning behind the decision, its legal basis, how broadly it would be applied and what action could be taken against those breaking the rule.

It had received no response by the time its report was published.

The decision has also prompted questions over whether local councils have the legal authority to regulate social customs in this way.

The council cited Syria's Local Administration Law No. 107 of 2011, but critics have questioned whether the powers it grants local authorities extend to imposing restrictions on private social practices.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said the decision had divided opinion, with supporters viewing it as a way of organising weddings and protecting the privacy of women-only celebrations.

Opponents, however, questioned both the council's authority to impose the restriction and how it could threaten legal measures without clearly defining either the offence or the punishment.

The Douma decision is not the first attempt by a local authority in the Damascus countryside to regulate men's attendance at women-only weddings.

In May, the local council in Badda issued a broader order banning men from entering women's wedding halls, including the groom and male relatives of both the bride and groom.

Unlike the Douma decision, the Badda order explicitly invoked religious considerations, saying the restriction was intended to prevent mixing between men and women.

The latest controversy comes amid a wider debate in post-Assad Syria over the extent to which local authorities should be able to regulate social behaviour and customs.

For grooms planning weddings in Douma, however, the immediate implication is simpler: when the women's party begins, even the man getting married may have to wait outside.