The official Hanbali opinion is that in the first forty days the “Nutfah” cannot be considered a living being. So abortion in this time is permissible for reasons classified as need (Haajah), although it would be makrooh to do it simply out of the lack of desire to have a child. In this period, it is Haram if done out of fear of poverty due to the verse. Other than that, during the first trimester or so if more than one doctor finds based upon reliable decisive scientific technology that the fetus will cause great harm or kill the mother then it becomes permissible according to the rule of no self-harm or harming others as well as the rule of necessities permit prohibitions.

al-Allamah Adnan An-Nahham (Kuwait)

Subhan Allah this is such an important topic.

Contemporary issues are amazing in that they challenge our Scholars to perform new Ijtihad, and rekindle our Intellectual Legacy.

On the Abortion tip, can a woman perform Abortion without a health condition being the reason for the act?

For example, a sister is pregnant and wants to abort because she does not feel she is ready for parenthood. Or she wants to finish school first before having a baby.

Jazak Allah Khayr for your time

Fahim

I would also urge a second opinion, as the interpretation of ultrasound is an art that has to be learned. When we did a routine ultrasound here in Santa Clara before my youngest son was born, the experts concluded that my son had a large misshapen head, and that we should abort (my wife was on medications for an ailment, and they thought that that might the cause);

Alhamdulillah, my son was born without any deformities – what they had mistaken for a misshapen head turned out to be a full head of hair, which had not been previously seen in the experts’ experience with delivering mostly western babies!

Wassalaam

Shiraz.