If Zayd divorces Fatimah, then 'Amr marries her and she bears a daughter from 'Amr, is this daughter among those excluded from the category of stepdaughters, or does she become a stepdaughter to Zayd?

The questioner : The ruling on stepdaughters concerns everyone, and the brothers always ask about it: If Zayd divorces Fatimah, then 'Amr marries her and she bears a daughter from 'Amr, is this daughter among those excluded from the category of stepdaughters, and does she become a stepdaughter to Zayd?

The Shaykh : I am unable to visualize this case right now, and it seems the questioner is more qualified to answer it than I am. Please inform us?

The questioner : What appears to me now, because I have been asked about it frequently and I have researched it in the books, including books of tafsir, is that she is among those excluded from the category of stepdaughters. Because if Zayd divorces her and 'Amr marries her and she bears a daughter from 'Amr, then this daughter of 'Amr is among those excluded from the category of stepdaughters, so she is not a stepdaughter.

The Shaykh : Has not?

The questioner : Because Allah (Glorified and Exalted is He) said: The daughter who was with the husband before the marriage exists with her mother; the implication and explicit meaning of this is that she is a stepdaughter, either in reality, as she is under the care of her mother's husband, or by estimation, if we say she is distant from her mother's husband, she is under his care by estimation, for example, or perhaps, because she is present, she may one day be under his care, so she falls within the category of stepdaughters. But if Zayd divorces her and she marries after him and bears a child from the second husband, is this child among the stepdaughters?

The Shaykh : By Allah, hesitation is justified in this matter. The issue is delicate and also requires review, and review by the precise brothers. So I do not have an answer to it at the moment, and you are a source of blessing.