What is the ruling on intentionally aborting a six-week-old fetus for social reasons, and what is the expiation required for that?
Source: FtawySummary from Ftawy's records · added here Sep 2, 2026
It is forbidden to intentionally abort a fetus at any stage of its development. Whoever aborts it without a legitimate Shar'i (Islamic legal) excuse must repent. If the abortion occurs after six weeks, there is a difference of opinion regarding what entails. The blood money (diyah) is different from the expiation (). Assuming the obligation of blood money due to the fetus's formation, expiation is obligatory according to some scholars and recommended according to others, while some do not consider it obligatory. However, if blood money is not obligatory because the fetus has not formed, then there is no expiation.
Summary from Ftawy's records · added here
Reviewed by El Fatwa's sharia committee.
Read the full answer on Ftawyhttps://ftawy.com/en/questions/164604
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- Ftawy
- Original fatwa ID
- 164604
- Added here
- . This is when the answer was added to El Fatwa, not the fatwa's date.
- Text
- Summary from Ftawy's records, reviewed by El Fatwa's sharia committee.
- Read the full ruling
- Read the full answer on Ftawy