108 babies born alive after abortions in Ireland; pro-lifers call for inquiry alleging infants ‘left to die’
Caroline MolloyIreland’s national health service reports that 108 babies were born alive after attempted abortions between 2019 and 2023 and later died, which has prompted pro-life groups and some lawmakers to call for a public inquiry into how such cases are handled, according to a Feb. 28 report by the Irish outlet Gript.
The figures, released by the Health Service Executive in response to a parliamentary question from independent lawmaker and Teachta Dála of Ireland Deputy Mattie McGrath, show that the infants were recorded as “early neonatal deaths” after abortions, Gript reported.
The data indicate 17 babies were born alive after abortion procedures in 2019. Twenty-nine were born alive after abortion procedures in 2023, the most recent year for which figures are available.
Pro life groups respond
Life Institute, a pro-life group, decried the findings.
“It is barbaric that 108 babies were born alive after abortion between 2019 and 2023 and that those who could have received life-saving interventions were ‘clearly then left to die,’” the group told Gript.
Life Institute spokeswoman Sandra Parda said the statistics were “deeply disquieting and disturbing” and called for a full inquiry on what is happening in relation to abortion provision in Ireland.
“We need answers, we need transparency,” Parda said, according to the report. “Looking at the evidence, clearly these babies are then simply being left to die, yet everything is shrouded in silence and secrecy.”
According to the figures cited in the report, 47 of the infants were more than 24 weeks gestation and/or weighed more than 500 grams (1.1 pounds) at birth when they were recorded as “early neonatal deaths after a termination of pregnancy” (TOP).
The data also indicated that 32 babies who were born alive after abortion had no diagnosis of a major congenital anomaly, Parda said.
“Were these babies simply left to die and were they denied the life-saving interventions that might have saved them?” she asked. “That would be completely barbaric.”
Deputy McGrath said the figures raise broader concerns about transparency in how abortion outcomes are recorded and reported.
