[Q 693] Iddah After Miscarriage or Abortion

Question

An islamic sister was pregnant for only a couple of weeks and she started the process of abortion. Her husband divorced her after the process was already started but the baby is not fully aborted yet as doctors are telling the lady that it takes few days to fully abort the baby and bleeding etc continues during until abortion is completed .

Question is that in this situation when her Iddat of talaq will be completed?

بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم

الجواب بعون الملك الوهاب اللهم هداية الحق والصواب

Answer

In the inquired scenario, if some limbs of the child had already formed, then the ‘iddah of that woman will be by delivery or abortion. If the child’s limbs had not formed, then it will be by completing three menstrual cycles. This is because ‘iddah ends upon abortion only if some limbs of the child had already formed.

It is stated in Al-Bahr al-Ra’iq Sharh Kanz al-Daqa’iq:

وإذا أسقطت سقطًا استبان بعض خلقه انقضت به العدة؛ لأنه ولد وإن لم يستبن بعض خلقه لم تنقض

Meaning, if a woman miscarries a fetus whose some limbs have become apparent, then her ‘iddah will end with it because it will be counted as a birth. And if none of its limbs have become apparent, then the ‘iddah will not end with it.

(Al-Bahr al-Ra’iq Sharh Kanz al-Daqa’iq, vol. 4, p. 147, Dar al-Kitab al-Islami)

Besides this, it should be clear that in this scenario, no shar’i reason for aborting the pregnancy is found. And it is not permissible to abort a pregnancy without a shar’i reason, even if the pregnancy is of a short duration.

In this regard, the following fatwa can be consulted:

Answered by: Jahanzaib Madani (AskMufti Scholar)

Verified by: Mufti Sajid Attari

Translated answer

Date: 25th July 2026