Human Germline Gene Editing from Maslahah Perspective: The Case of the World’s First Gene Edited Babies

Abstract

This paper describes maslahah, a fundamental concept in Islam and its application in deliberating permissibility of human germline gene editing from an Islamic perspective. This paper refers to He Jiankui's research that led to the birth of the world's first gene edited babies, who were edited to be protected from HIV. The objective, procedure, and output of the research were assessed against the conditions of maslahah. It can be concluded that the experiment did not meet the conditions; it is inconsistent with the objectives of shariah (maqasid al-shariah) and some fundamental Islamic teachings that it did not preserve greater benefit, hence it could be considered impermissible.