The British Parliament on Friday, June 20, passed a bill seeking to legalise assisted dying for terminally ill patients. Introduced by Labour MP Kim Leadbeater in October 2024, the Bill aims to provide relief to mentally competent adults with terminal illnesses by allowing them to end their own lives, rather than languishing in excruciating pain. However, while it portrays magnanimity towards the afflicted souls, the Bill raises profound ethical concerns and challenges religious convictions, especially among Muslims. Thus, it is important to examine its core provisions and the Islamic perspective on it.
The Assisted Dying Bill and Its Provisions
The “Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life)” Bill gives mentally competent adults in England and Wales who have a terminal illness and are said to have six months or less to live the right to choose an assisted death, typically via doctor-prescribed or administered lethal medication. To prevent abuse, the Bill includes safeguards requiring multiple medical and possibly judicial approvals to prevent coercion or misuse.
Kim Leadbeater argued that the Bill grants individuals facing death dignity and autonomy, likening it to a woman’s right to choose abortion. “As much as I will fight for the rights of disabled people to be treated better by society, I will also fight for the rights of dying people,” she said.
Nonetheless, critics argue the Bill poses serious ethical and social risks. Muslim scholars and organisations such as the British Islamic Medical Association (BIMA) warn that legalising assisted dying could gradually extend beyond terminal cases, as seen in Canada, and potentially pressure vulnerable groups, such as the elderly or disabled, to opt for death. It could also undermine trust within families and the healthcare system, shifting focus from improving palliative care to facilitating death.
The Islamic Perspective
Islam places utmost value on the sanctity of life. It views it as a sacred trust from Allah, who alone determines its beginning and end. Allah commands: “Do not kill the soul which Allah has made sacred except by right” (Al-An’am 6:152), and prohibits taking one’s own life. Thus, assisted dying, whether labelled euthanasia or suicide, is unequivocally haram, regarded as akin to murder or self-destruction, both major sins.
The Prophet Muhammad (SAW) cautioned against seeking death due to hardship: “Let none of you wish for death because of a calamity befalling him” (Sahih Bukhari 5671), and rebuked those who hastened death to escape pain, warning it could prevent entry to Paradise.
Moreover, Islam recognises suffering as a test of faith that demands patience in enduring the pain while acknowledging its spiritual reward: “Those who patiently persevere will receive a reward without measure” (Az-Zumar 39:10).
While firmly opposing any deliberate act to end life, Islam encourages seeking treatment and lawful pain relief to alleviate suffering, provided the intention is not to hasten death. The Prophet (SAW) emphasised this when he said: “Seek treatment, O slaves of Allah! For Allah does not create any disease but He also creates with it the cure, except for old age.”
Objectively, Islam permits withholding or withdrawing life support, like ventilators, if medical consensus confirms a treatment is futile, allowing natural death without unnecessarily prolonging a vegetative state, a view supported by the Islamic Medical Assembly of North America.
Conclusion
While Islamic scholars unanimously reject assisted dying, a 2025 Hyphen poll shows that 43% of Muslims in England and Wales oppose the bill compared to 15% of non-Muslims, with 70% citing religious beliefs. However, 34% of Muslims support it, indicating some variation influenced by personal or ethical views.
Conclusively, while the Assisted Dying Bill claims to offer autonomy and an end to suffering, Islamic principles uphold the sanctity of life, urging believers to endure trials with patience and seek ethical medical care. Muslim scholars continue to advocate for improved palliative care and caution against measures that compromise the sacred trust of life.
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