The one with the stronger right to custody of a girl before the age of seven

The questioner:
The questioner asks: The scholar said that when a girl reaches seven years of age, her father has the stronger right to her custody. Who has the stronger right to her before the age of seven, the mother or the father?

The Shaykh:
It has been established that the mother has priority before the age of seven. If she is divorced and has not remarried, she has the stronger right to the custody of the child, whether it is a boy or a girl,

The questioner:
until the age of seven.

The Shaykh:
Yes, generally a child distinguishes right from wrong at the age of seven, though he may do so before that. Yes.

The questioner:
He must be a mahram (a relative one may not marry) for the children. Hmm?

The Shaykh:
Reaching puberty is not a condition for a mahram; distinguishing right from wrong is sufficient. The mahram is a man who has reached puberty, yes.