The Ruling on Abortion in the Third Month of Pregnancy

Question

A question regarding the permissibility of abortion in the third month of pregnancy, specifically when both the husband and wife agree to terminate the pregnancy using medication. [AR_ID:1833]

Answer 1

Peace be upon you.
Ayatollah Khamenei (may Allah protect him):
1- When is abortion permissible and when is it not?
It is not permissible to abort the fetus merely due to economic difficulties, or if the fetus is a result of unlawful relations (such as adultery), or if the fetus has physical defects, or due to anticipated hardships in its life before the soul enters it.
However, if there is a concern for the mother's life due to the continuation of the pregnancy, and this is based on the opinion of a trusted specialist doctor, then abortion is permissible before the soul enters the fetus.
After the soul has entered, there is some deliberation, but it is not far-fetched that abortion may also be permissible in this case.

Abortion is permissible before the soul enters the fetus if a definitive illness of the fetus is diagnosed and maintaining the pregnancy would cause hardship, but it is obligatory to pay the blood money in this case.

2- Who is liable for the blood money?
The blood money is obligatory on the person who performed the abortion, even if it was done by mutual agreement of both parties.

3- To whom is the blood money owed?
The blood money is for the heirs of the fetus, taking into account the inheritance classes, but there is no share of the blood money for the heir who performed the abortion.

4- What is the amount of blood money?
The amount of blood money varies according to the stages of the fetus:
A- Settled sperm:
Twenty dinars = 72 grams of gold.
B- Clot:
Forty dinars = 144 grams of gold.
C- Chewed lump:
Sixty dinars = 216 grams of gold.
D- Bones:
Eighty dinars = 288 grams of gold.
E- Flesh covered:
One hundred dinars = 360 grams of gold.
F- When the soul enters:
One thousand dinars = 3600 grams of gold.
The dinar equals: 3.60 grams of gold, and it suffices for the gold to be of 18 karats.
Source: Answers to Questions, Q 1266, Q 1262.

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Ayatollah Sistani (may Allah protect him):

1- When is abortion permissible and when is it not?
Abortion is not permissible after the sperm has settled unless the mother fears harm to herself, or if its continuation poses a danger to her life, or if its continuation would cause her unbearable hardship, and there is no way to avoid this hardship except through abortion. In this case, abortion is permissible as long as the soul has not entered the fetus. After the soul has entered, it is absolutely impermissible as a precaution. The deformity of the fetus alone does not justify abortion.

2- Who is liable for the blood money?
The person who performed the abortion is liable for the blood money, and a penalty is also obligatory if the abortion was not permissible, which is fasting for two consecutive months. If unable, then feeding sixty needy people, each with 750 grams of wheat or bread. The parents may absolve the direct perpetrator from this obligation.

3- To whom is the blood money owed?
The blood money is for the heirs of the fetus, taking into account the inheritance classes, but there is no share of the blood money for the heir who performed the abortion. If both parents participated in the abortion, the blood money is owed to the second class: the siblings and grandparents.

4- What is the amount of blood money?
The mentioned amounts are sufficient to pay the blood money estimated in silver, although paying in gold is also permissible. This is based on the evidence indicating that the estimation in dinars refers to the blood money for a life, and the intended measure is the silver mithqal, which equals 4.64 grams.
First: 105 mithqals of silver for the sperm.
Second: 210 mithqals of silver for the clot.
Third: 315 mithqals of silver for the chewed lump.
Fourth: 420 mithqals of silver if bones have developed.
Fifth: 525 mithqals of silver when all organs and limbs are complete, with no difference between male and female as a precaution.
Sixth: 5250 mithqals of silver for a male if it is after the soul has entered, and half for a female if it is after the soul has entered, whether it dies after being born alive or in the womb, as a precaution.
The formation of the fetus is completed within three to four months from the time of the sperm's settlement, after which the human soul enters it. There is some ambiguity in determining the stages of its formation, and the common view is that it is forty days as sperm, forty days as a clot, and forty days as a chewed lump, but this is subject to dispute or denial. The precaution in case of doubt about its transition from one stage to another is to agree on its blood money through reconciliation or similar means, although the stronger view is to suffice with the lesser amount unless the transition is proven.
The husband may pay the blood money on behalf of his wife if she performed the abortion herself, and the penalty remains, which is fasting for two consecutive months. If unable, then feeding sixty needy people, each with 750 grams of wheat or bread.

May you be successful in all good.