Mu' meneen Brothers and Sisters,

As Salaam Aleikum wa Rahmatullahi wa Barakatuh.  (May Allah's Peace, Mercy and Blessings be upon all of you)

One of our brothers/sisters has asked this question:

salaam alaikum brother

first i want to tell u what a great job ur doing in this homepage, and i am a regular reader of all ur articles... they really inspire a person to do everything by the ways of islam... and i am a good example of that, and want to say thanks as im now engaged and am getting married in the near future (which i had been refusing for many years, because of personal problems, i dont want to dig in them again)... but anyway thank u, and may allah bless u for all ur help

now to the question i really wanted to ask; i just read a article, about a woman, who comitted zina and is now pregnant, and asked u if she could abort the child, and u said no... but i had heard that there are some excuses for a abortion? is that true, or is abortion haram no matter what?

thats all, thank u

salaam alaikum 

(There may be some grammatical and spelling errors in the above statement. The forum does not change anything from questions, comments and statements received from our readers for circulation in confidentiality.)

Answer:

When can one abort?

In the name of Allah, We praise Him, seek His help and ask for His forgiveness. Whoever Allah guides none can misguide, and whoever He allows to fall astray, none can guide them aright. We bear witness that there is no one (no idol, no person, no grave, no prophet, no imam, no dai, nobody!) worthy of worship but Allah Alone, and we bear witness that Muhammad (saws) is His slave-servant and the seal of His Messengers.

May Allah Subhanah reward you with the best of this world and the Hereafter for your kind comments of encouragement for our humble efforts in the propagation of the Truth. If our humble and modest efforts have helped even one brother or sister get closer to Allah and His Deen of Truth, then we would consider ourselves indeed fortunate to have been given this opportunity by the Lord Most Merciful to serve in His Cause. We hope, beg, and pray the Merciful Lord accepts our humble and weak efforts, forgives us our shortcomings, and saves you, us, and all the believers from the torment of the Hell Fire. Ameen.

Your Question: but i had heard that there are some excuses for a abortion? is that true, or is abortion haram no matter what?

Allah says in the Holy Quran Chapter 6 Surah Anaam verse 140: Most surely they became losers, who, in their folly and ignorance killed their own children; and made unlawful what Allah had provided them as sustenance, falsely ascribing prohibitions to Allah. Surely, they went astray and were not at all rightly guided.

Allah says in the Holy Quran Chapter 6 Surah Anaam verse 151 (part): You should not kill your children for fear of poverty; for We provide sustenance for you and will provide sustenance for them also.

Allah says in the Holy Quran Chapter 17 Surah Israa verse 31: Do not kill your children for fear of want; for it is We Who provide for them, and for you as well. Indeed, their killing is a heinous crime!

The heinous act of intentionally killing one’s unborn child is akin to the crime of murder in the Sight of Allah Subhanah, and abortion is thus absolutely forbidden and impermissible in Islam. If one performs or is an accomplice in the heinous crime of abortion, and does not sincerely repent to Allah Subhanah for their abomination, they will be held severely accountable for their sin of intentional murder of an innocent soul in the Just and Supreme Court of The Majestic Lord on an Inevitable Day.

Your Question: is abortion haram no matter what?

In light of the guidance of the Quran and the Sunnah, the intentional killing of an un-born child or abortion is absolutely and totally forbidden in Islam. The only one exception some jurists and scholars in Islam have reluctantly allowed abortion is when in extreme circumstances and situations, the medical experts come to a solemn conclusion that it would be humanly possible to save only one, either the mother or the un-born child, during a severe pregnancy complication. In such extreme cases where only one of the two, either the mother or the un-born child, can be saved, the jurists have concluded that the life of the one who is alive will take precedence over the one who is not yet born. Other than this one extreme exception, to the best of our knowledge, there is absolutely no room where abortion would be permitted in Islam.

One can only imagine the honor, respect, and rights Islam has given to the life of the unborn child by the following examples:

Even if one who is pregnant is convicted in a Shariah Court of capital punishment, she will not be put to death until after she has delivered her baby.

The inheritance of the deceased father will not be distributed amongst the heirs until his pregnant widow has delivered her burden and the new born baby is allocated a share from its deceased fathers wealth;

During a quarrel and fight between two women, one amongst them threw a stone at the other woman who was pregnant, and as a result of the blow of the stone the unborn baby was killed while still in the womb. The case was brought to the attention of the Messenger of Allah (saws) who judged that the one who threw the stone should pay ‘diya’ or blood money to the guardians of the deceased unborn baby.

Whatever written of Truth and benefit is only due to Allah’s Assistance and Guidance, and whatever of error is of me alone. Allah Alone Knows Best and He is the Only Source of Strength.

Your Brother in Islam,

Burhan