What is the compensation for the fetus when the mother is a free Muslim woman, but the fetus is legally deemed to be a free Muslim?

General Chapter

Al-Mughni

Book of Blood-Money (Diyyāt)

Book 48 · Issue 3 · Bab 1

Open in Qurani

Primary text

If the fetus of a free woman is legally ruled as being Muslim—even if the mother is a non-believer (like a Christian woman married to a Muslim man) or a slave woman (as in the case of offspring from unlawful cohabitation or quasi-ownership)—the compensation due for its death is the Ghurra (a male or female slave). This is because the fetus is governed by the status of Islam, and it inherits nothing from the mother if she is a non-Muslim or a slave.