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:

What can those Muslim women do who have been assaulted and become pregnant as a result of rape? Is it permissible for them to abort the foetus or not?  

(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:

Can an assaulted woman abort the child?

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.

The woman who are physically assaulted and raped, and as a result of this oppression, they were to become pregnant; there is absolutely no sin upon them or the baby in the least.

It would be absolutely impermissible for the woman to abort the foetus; for that would be considered an illegal murder of a human soul and a grave sin in the sight of Allah Subhanah.

Both the woman and the baby are victims, and they should be treated with respect and dignity, and helped in their ordeal. The child will be recognized through his mother, and will be given all the rights that are due to a muslim brother. Both the mother and the baby will be respected and accepted as righteous human beings in society, as it was not the fault of either of them; but rather they were victims of an evil committed by some immoral and criminal person, who will have a severe accounting for his evil deeds in the Court of Allah Subhanah on an Inevitable Day.

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

Your Brother in Islam,

Burhan