The Effect of the Psychological Motive for Committing a Crime out of Necessity in Islamic Jurisprudence and Iraqi law - A Comparative Study

Section: Research Paper
Published
Jun 24, 2025
Pages
777-817

Abstract

Islam has founded fixed laws and specific rules for mankind to deal with the circumstances that surround them. However, compelling circumstances may occur that force an individual to perform actions that are outside of these fixed laws and rules, whereas they may not want to do them if the imposing reality on them does not exist. The Almighty Allah Has mentioned the permissibility of eating the forbidden foods such as dead meat, blood, pork, and what was slaughtered for other than Allah in necessary circumstances, since human psychological status is taken into account that demands them to eat them in severe hunger and to preserve their lives that the Almighty has honored and ordered mankind to preserve. The Islamic jurisprudence scholars have applied the analogy of eating the forbidden and other impurity things, as the Almighty mentioned in his book, with the ruling on drinking wine and intoxicants in the case of severity of thirst. They did not apply this analogy due to the severity of its prohibition and its uselessness to quench the thirst. Rather, it increases thirst because of the heat it contains. With regards to assaulting another person on the pretext of necessity, such as killing him and eating his flesh, or chopping off his organ to eat, the Shariah scholars have agreed that it is a forbidden action to perform. In this context, the Iraqi law has considered necessity of choosing the lesser of two evils, which means individuals are not prevented from committing a criminal act prescribed by law, if they face greater harm by not committing it, and while one of them must be done. Although individuals are exempted from his criminal acts in the case of necessity, yet they are obligated to provide financial compensation to the aggrieved person.

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How to Cite

Omar Rasool, S., شیروان, Abdullah Hamad, A., & عادل. (2025). The Effect of the Psychological Motive for Committing a Crime out of Necessity in Islamic Jurisprudence and Iraqi law - A Comparative Study. Adab Al-Rafidayn, 52(911), 777–817. Retrieved from https://ojs.uomosul.edu.iq/index.php/radab/article/view/1522