Dublin

Abortion in some cases: Overwhelmingly Catholic Ireland has legalized an exception to the country’s blanket abortion ban, allowing abortion if it is necessary to save a woman’s life. The law was prompted by international outrage over the death last fall of Savita Halappanavar, a 31-year-old Indian woman living in Ireland. She began miscarrying in her 17th week of pregnancy and became gravely ill, but doctors refused to terminate and she died of sepsis four days after her fetus died. Abortion is still illegal in all other cases, including rape and incest, and any woman who obtains an illegal abortion is subject to up to 14 years in prison.

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