salam aleikum. i have one question about children. if a woman who is muslim but dont practise, dont wear hijab and dont pray gets 4 children with one man who is not muslim. then its children of zina they get, but whos last name should the children have. the children now have the dads last name. and what happends if the woman and man separate. with who should the children live.

All perfect praise be to Allaah, The Lord of the Worlds. I testify that there is none worthy of worship except Allaah, and that Muhammad is His slave and Messenger.

It is not permissible for a Muslim woman to marry a non-Muslim man and if it happens, then this marriage is void. Allaah Says (what means): {And do not marry polytheistic men [to your women] until they believe.}[Quran 2:221] When interpreting this verse, Al-Qurtubi said: “This means do not marry off a Muslim woman to a polytheistic man, and the Muslim nation agreed in a consensus that a polytheist man can not marry a Muslim woman at all as this is a humiliation for Islam.”

Therefore, this woman should separate from this man if she is still with him. Ash-Shaafi’i said: “If a Muslim woman marries a Thimmi man (i.e. a Jewish or Christian man who is living in a Muslim state under the Muslim rule) her marriage is void.”

Hence, this woman is obliged to repent to Allaah for marrying this man and for abandoning the prayer and Hijab. She should observe the prayer and wear Hijab. Indeed, abandoning the prayer and not wearing Hijab are among the grave major sins.

As regards the children, there are some details about their family lineage. If that man believes that the marriage was valid, then they should be traced back to him. Ibn Taymiyyah said: “The Muslims agree that if the marriage in which the husband believes that it is valid is consummated, then the child is traced back to the husband, and they inherit each other according to the agreement of the Muslims, although this marriage is itself invalid according to the consensus of Muslims. This ruling applies whether the husband is Muslim or non-Muslim.”

However, if the husband does not believe that the marriage was valid, then the children are not traced back to him, but they should be traced back to their mother.

Of course, all the above rulings apply only if the matter was marriage, but if it was just an affectionate relationship, then him having sexual intercourse with her is nothing but Zina (fornication or adultery) and the children are not traced back to him; rather, they should be traced back to their mother.

Moreover, a non-Muslim has no right in the fostering of the children in any case, because among the conditions of the fosterer is that she/he should be a Muslim according to the view of the majority of the scholars and this is the preponderant view.

Nonetheless, the children are Muslims because the children follow the better religion of either parents as established by the scholars . For more benefit, please refer to Fatwa 81957.

Allaah Knows best.