چکیده:
Siqt janin (abortion) is defined as the intentional or unintentional action that is performed on a pregnant woman, which compromises the life or the foetal development of an unborn baby, such that it dies or cannot continue living out of the uterus. Due to scientific and technological advancement in medicine, the controversy of therapeutic abortion is very much at the forefront of modern discussions. It is also a matter of dispute amongst Muslim jurists. Initial positions and rulings of jurists differ with regards to abortion in the first four months of pregnancy, which is prior to ensoulment (nafkh ruh). Although there is a difference in opinion among Sunni jurists regarding abortion before ensoulment, there is a consensus that under normal circumstances, after this critical juncture, it is forbidden. All Shi’i jurists, however, deem abortion without due reason, as forbidden regardless of the stage in pregnancy. Even so, most jurists permit the abortion of the foetus prior to ensoulment with the condition that there is substantial danger to expectant mother’s health. Moreover, if there is danger to the mother’s life, then some consider abortion permissible even after ensoulment.
خلاصه ماشینی:
Therapeutic Abortion: Ensuring the Health and Survival of Mothers Mojtaba Elahian1 Nasrin Fattahi2 Maryam Khademi3 Siqt janin (abortion) is defined as the intentional or unintentional action that is performed on a pregnant woman, which compromises the life or the foetal development of an unborn baby, such that it dies or cannot continue living out of the uterus.
Most Shi‘i and Sunni jurists consider abortion permissible before ensoulment if the continuation of the pregnancy is dangerous for the health of the mother.
According to Ayatollah Khamenei, if continuation of the pregnancy is a danger to the mother‘s life on the authority of reliable medical specialists in the relevant field, abortion is permissible prior to ensoulment (Khamenei 1999, 279-280).
In response to a question in this regard, one jurist has stated that if the mother‘s life is in danger and the foetus is in its early stages, then an abortion would be permissible.
Preference of the primary: When there is a conflict between the pregnant woman‘s life and the survival of a foetus that has not gone through ensoulment, and the foetus poses a serious threat to the expectant mother, who possesses a soul and is complete, then it is permissible to abort the baby in order to save the mother (Makarem Shirazi 2001, 504).
As such, the abortion of a living foetus in order to save the life of the mother is not permissible (Ibn Quddamah 1998, 7:645).
The Islamic Fiqh Academy, for instance, considers abortion after ensoulment permissible only if the mother‘s life is in danger (al-Dubsi 2010, 140).