A Study of the Legitimacy of Destroying In Vitro Embryos in Jurisprudence of Islamic Schools of Law

The question of when in vitro embryos turn to living human beings, and should not therefore be destroyed, has been a matter of significance attracting Muslim jurisprudents special atention. The legitimacy of destroying in vitro embryos depends on when they acquire the status of living human beings. Religious scholars of the Sunni schools of law have very different and diverging opinions concerning this issue. In this comparative study, we aim to examine the prohibition of destruction of human embryos developed via in vitro fertilization from the perspective of Islamic schools and based on Islamic rules. The findings indicate that, according to the majority of Maliki jurisprudents, some Hanafi jurisprudents, Ghazali (a prominent Shafi’i jurisprudent), Ibn al-Jawzi (a prominent Hanbali jurisprudent) and the majority of Shi’ite jurisprudents, the sanctity of human embryos developed via in vitro fertilization depends on their establishment in the uterus. Therefore, it is legitimate to destroy in vitro embryos but only before they are located in the uterus.