What is the ruling on a mother aborting her fetus: the first time due to illness, and the second time intentionally out of shyness from her children, given her ignorance of the sin of abortion?
Abortion is forbidden by Sharia, except in two cases, and a pregnant woman's shyness before her children does not justify abortion. If a woman aborts her fetus out of ignorance of the prohibition, only the sin is dropped from her, and she is not obligated to pay the blood money (diyah) or expiation (kaffarah) if the abortion occurred before the fetus was formed (before 40 days). However, if it was after the formation (after 40 days), then she is obligated to pay the blood money and expiation, even if she was ignorant of the prohibition. The blood money for the fetus is a ghura (a male or female slave, or its equivalent in money) to be handed over to its heirs, and the mother does not inherit from it because she is the killer. The blood money is waived if the heirs pardon it. As for the expiation, it is a right of Allah and is not waived by the pardon of the heirs.
Summarized from the full answer at Ftawy · reviewed Sep 2, 2026
Read the full answer on Ftawyhttps://ftawy.com/en/questions/38791