Bella Astilah says she never expected 'close friend' Ruhainies to betray her: 'I forgive but I cannot forget'
Not wanting to hold a grudge, Bella Astillah says she's choosing to forgive Ruhainies although the latter is embroiled in controversy for suspected khalwat (close proximity) with her husband, Aliff Aziz.

However, Bella added that she could never forget the incident as it broke her heart. The 29-year-old singer-actress told this to mStar – The Star's Malay-language portal – on Wednesday (March 13).

"Until now, the actress (Ruhainies) has not contacted me at all. I also do not want to prolong this issue, and in conjunction with the holy month of Ramadan, I forgive her.

"I forgive, but I cannot forget. I do not know if in the future we will meet; I have not thought about that yet. I just hope I will not meet her.

"What I hope is that this incident serves as a lesson for everyone, including myself," she said exclusively to mStar, when met at A. Aida Productions office.

Bella was there to sign several drama offers produced by Aida's company.

After the controversy became public, Aida came out to say that she had "blacklisted" Ruhainies from acting in her future productions.

Meanwhile, Bella said she did not expect Ruhainies, 31, whom she considered a close friend, to do such a thing.

Bella was previously in the cast list of the drama Terjerat, headlined by Aliff and Ruhainies. However, she withdrew from starring in the drama due to this controversy.

"On the filming set, she was very nice. I did not expect this to happen, so it is difficult for me to comment.

"I also decided to withdraw from filming Terjerat because that was the best decision. Fortunately, the production team understands the situation I am going through," she said.

On Wednesday, Bella attended the Federal Territories Sharia Lower Court for the first mention after she filed for divorce from Aliff on Monday.

However, Aliff did not appear in court as he was reportedly involved in the filming of the drama.

When asked about her husband's condition, Bella declined to comment.

"I cannot comment on Aliff. Just pray for him.

"I filed for divorce against Aliff. Perhaps this divorce and the incident that occurred is a birthday gift for me on March 15. It is a lesson for me to love myself more," she told mStar.

Last Saturday, the local entertainment world was abuzz when Aliff and Ruhainies were detained by the Federal Territories Islamic Religious Department (Jawi) at a condominium in Kuala Lumpur. They were later released on bail.

Bella and Aliff got married on Sept 9, 2016, and are parents to two children.
This comes after reports of her husband, Singaporean actor Aliff Aziz, was allegedly caught for khalwat with co-star Ruhainies at a condominium in Kuala Lumpur.