The response of Islamic jurisprudence to ectopic pregnancies, frozen embryo implantation and euthanasia

The opinions of the Jurisconsult of Egypt on Islamic law regarding test tube fertilization, embryo transfer and abortion are explained. Test tube babies, if not derived from the husband's sperm, are by definition, "zina" or the result of illicit sexual intercourse. This type of quasi-adultery is punishable by mere disgracing, rather than lapidation, or stoning to death. Such children cannot inherit even from the mother. Possibly, a female child may marry the husband, to be legitimized in terms of inheritance. Under Islamic law, embryo transfer is illegal insofar as it involves artificial insemination of the donor by the husband; temporary maternity by the donor is a jural concept that has no place in Islamic family law. The egg of the donor, not the surrogate mother, places the issue in the thorny area of multiple suckling. There have been no pronouncements by Islamic legal experts on euthanasia or pregnancy by in vitro fertilization of orphaned embryos. Abortion law "ijhad" in Kuwait was amended in 1982 to permit abortion where either grievous bodily harm to the mother is imminent or it is proved that the baby will suffer incurable brain damage or severe mental retardation. The decision must be approved unanimously by 3 Muslim consultant physicians presided over by an obstetrician or gynecologist, parental consent is required, and the hospital must have an obstetric-gynecological wing. There is precedent in Islamic law for saving the life of the mother where there is a clear choice of allowing either the fetus or the mother to survive. Similarly in case of miscarriage or attempted miscarriage, damages for a fetus or stillborn are less than those paid for a live birth. Penalties for therapeutic abortion, for example after exposure to German measles, have been viewed as less serious before 120 days of gestation, when the Prophet indicated that the embryo is given a soul. These ethical interpretations are worth considering for Western jurists as a source of ideas.