<P> Homosexual intercourse is illegal under sharia law, though the prescribed penalties differ from one school of jurisprudence to another . For example, some Muslim - majority countries impose the death penalty for acts perceived as sodomy and homosexual activities: Iran, Saudi Arabia, and in other Muslim - majority countries such as Egypt, Iraq, and the Indonesian province of Aceh, same - sex sexual acts are illegal, and LGBT people regularly face violence and discrimination . </P> <P> Many claim sharia law encourages domestic violence against women, when a husband suspects nushuz (disobedience, disloyalty, rebellion, ill conduct) in his wife . Other scholars claim wife beating, for nashizah, is not consistent with modern perspectives of the Quran . </P> <P> One of the verses of the Quran relating to permissibility of domestic violence is Surah 4: 34 . Sharia has been criticized for ignoring women's rights in domestic abuse cases . Musawah, CEDAW, KAFA and other organizations have proposed ways to modify sharia - inspired laws to improve women's rights in Islamic nations, including women's rights in domestic abuse cases . </P> <P> Shari'a is the basis for personal status laws in most Islamic majority nations . These personal status laws determine rights of women in matters of marriage, divorce and child custody . A 2011 UNICEF report concludes that sharia law provisions are discriminatory against women from a human rights perspective . In legal proceedings under sharia law, a woman's testimony is worth half of a man's before a court . </P>

According to classical jurists what is the difference between shari'a and fiqh