Repeating the words of divorce thrice

Q: Upon a dispute between a man and his wife, he divorced her saying: "She is divorced. She is divorced. She is divorced." He does not know if he said other words or not and whether he said that she is divorced after that or not. He mentioned that he did not mean by the repetition of divorce the number of times of divorce but he wanted to let his mother know and to confirm divorce. (Part No. 20; Page No. 147) He wonders if it is permissible for him to return to his wife in marriage or not.

A: If the reality is as mentioned by the person asking for Fatwa (legal opinion issued by a qualified Muslim scholar), that is, he divorced his wife saying, "She is divorced. She is divorced. She is divorced," and he does not know whether he said other words or not, and he means by the repetition of divorce to emphasize and make his mother know this, the wife is considered divorced one time. Hence, if it was not the third divorce for him and it was not a compensation-stipulated divorce, it is a revocable divorce. It is permissible for him to return to his wife as long as she is in the `Iddah (woman's prescribed waiting period after divorce or widowhood). May Allah grant us success. May peace and blessings be upon our Prophet Muhammad, his family, and Companions.