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Is it permissible to abort and terminate a fetus diagnosed with a rare genetic disease for which there is no known cure or clear prognosis, and which was discovered in the tenth week of pregnancy?

1 min readAlso available in العربية

If the fetus exceeds forty days [in gestation] and the soul has not yet been breathed into it, then aborting it is a matter of scholarly disagreement. The preponderant view is that it is not forbidden to abort it before the soul is breathed into it if there is a permissible excuse for doing so, such as severe, untreatable deformities. The Fiqh Council of the Muslim World League holds that:

1. It is not permissible to abort a pregnancy after 120 days unless it is established by a reliable medical report that the continuation of the pregnancy poses a definite danger to the mother's life.

2. Before 120 days, it is permissible to abort the fetus if it is established by a reliable medical report that it has a severe, untreatable deformity, and upon the request of the parents.

Summarized from the full answer at Ftawy · reviewed Sep 2, 2026

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