Is it permissible to pray over a fetus that was miscarried at nineteen weeks and three days and then bury it, taking into account that the country's law (France) does not allow this until twenty-two weeks or a weight of five hundred grams? And is what the father did—praying over it alone and then leaving it to be cremated—permissible?

The miscarried fetus should be buried if some of its features are discernible. Scholars have differed regarding offering the funeral prayer for it. The majority of them hold that it is not obligatory unless it cries out upon birth. However, Imam Ahmad is of the view that it is obligatory if the fetus has reached four months of gestation, and this is the more preponderant opinion. A Muslim is excused for not burying his son if local law prohibits it, based on the Almighty's saying: "Allah does not burden a soul beyond its capacity" (Quran 2:286). However, he must emigrate to a country where he can practice his religion freely.