My sister’s husband has been absent since May 10th, 2000. We do not know his whereabouts until today, so we filed for divorce. In January 2006, the court granted my sister a divorce. When will her [‘iddah] waiting period after her divorce start?

 

If the case is as mentioned in the question, then the ‘iddah of the divorced woman (the inquirer’s sister) will be from the date she was granted the divorce (January 2006); it is not from the date of the husband’s absence.

And God knows best.