Late-term abortion doctor George Tiller, a prominent advocate for abortion rights wounded by a protester more than a decade ago, was shot and killed Sunday at his church in Wichita, a city official said.

A City Hall official who spoke on condition of anonymity because he wasn't authorized to speak about the case told The Associated Press that the 67-year-old doctor was killed Sunday morning at Reformation Lutheran Church.

Police spokesman Gordon Bassham would not confirm the victim's identity pending notification of relatives. He said the shooting occurred at 10:03 a.m. and the gunman fled the scene in a 1993 powder blue Ford Taurus registered in another part of the state.

Suspects Lourdes Felipe, 26, of Sangandaan Street, Caloocan City; and Teresita Posadas, 38, of Fugoso Street, Sta. Cruz, Manila were caught in the act by operatives of the Manila Police District (MPD) – Station 2 (Tondo), said a police report.

The report said Police Officers 2 Roberto Benitez and Jessie Martinez were patrolling at about 3:45 a.m. Friday when they noticed the two women throwing away a plastic bag inside the compound of Sto. Niño Parish on Ortega Street.

When they accosted the suspects, they found that the plastic bag contained a five-to-six-month-old unborn baby.

During investigation, Felipe reportedly admitted that the baby was hers and that she had paid Posadas to abort it.

The Utah teenager, who was seven months pregnant, has been charged in juvenile court with criminal solicitation to commit murder, The Salt Lake Tribune reported.

"I haven't decided who's more at fault," Mark Watkins, police chief of Naples, 125 miles east of Salt Lake City, told The Associated Press. "She was just as cold as the assailant - we're not going to treat her as a victim."

She appeared in court on Wednesday and was ordered to remain in a juvenile detention centre.

Prosecutors say the girl paid 21-year-old Arron Harrison $150 (£95) to beat her with the intention of causing a miscarriage after her boyfriend threatened to part ways with her if she did not get rid of the foetus.

Court documents alleged that Mr Harrison brought the girl to his home on May 20, where he allegedly struck and bit her, leaving bruises on her stomach and a bite mark on her neck.

Court papers say her foetus survived.

Mr Harrison is charged with attempted murder.

Cardinal Lluis Martinez Sistach of Barcelona, Spain has issued a scathing denunciation of plans to ease access to legal abortion, saying that the plan shows "we are in an egotistical and hedonistic society." The cardinal pleaded with lawmakers to resist the plans of the Socialist government leadership, comparing the evil of abortion with the Holocaust. "To touch a man or a woman is to touch God," he said. "To kill a human being is to kill God."

In just one week, abortion supporters in Barcelona have vandalized the parish of St. Francis, the offices of E-Cristians and the Abat Oliba University.

"The new attack, this time on an educational center and the historic building that houses it, is the latest in a string of aggressions by supporters of the new law on abortion that the Socialist Party government is promoting. Once more we must lament that pro-abortion activist have expressed themselves again through violence," said E-Cristians.

Phrases such as "Abortion on demand now!" and "Get your rosaries off our ovaries" covered the walls of the university building.

Abortion rights advocates at the United Nations (UN) are pursuing a new approach – one that avoids mention of abortion, promotes a right to maternal health, and seeks to enforce "reproductive rights" norms among UN member States.

The reason for the shift seems to be an increased confidence among activists and UN officials that they have secured or are close to securing a new international right to abortion. According to statements by Center for Reproductive Rights (CRR), Human Rights Watch, Amnesty International and others, their confidence has been boosted by winning legal cases, most notably in Colombia where the 2006 constitutional court's decision to liberalize abortion was based upon the activist's interpretation of UN treaties.

By creating a new "right" to maternal health over the next several years, advocates can consolidate gains while avoiding scrutiny by opponents. Then, once they are confident the new right is established, they can assert the claim that abortion is part of the new international obligation. A blueprint for the legal dimension of the approach is the "International Initiative on Maternal Mortality and Human Rights."

The Obama administration is floating the notion of common ground with the pro-life community in order to reduce the number of abortions. Or so he says. But as a magician uses smoke and mirrors to confuse the audience, Obama is using speeches and misdirection to cover up what he is REALLY doing, which is to increase Planned Parenthood's funding so they can kill babies.

Of the 68 percent who told polling company, inc./WomanTrend that they know someone who has had an abortion, 55 percent said the abortion was a negative experience while 33 percent said it was a positive experience.

Moreover, 53 percent said they believe abortion is "almost always a bad thing" for a woman while 13 percent said it was "almost always a good thing." Twenty-one percent, meanwhile, said it was neither bad nor good and 13 percent said they do not know or refused to answer.

Despite this, a vast majority of Americans support a woman’s right to have an abortion, though few (15 percent) would support it past the third month of pregnancy and for reasons other than rape, incest or to save the life of the mother.

But when probed about late-term abortions – abortions in the 7th, 8th, and 9th months of pregnancies – most (82 percent) said they would be opposed to the nomination of a Supreme Court Justice who supports such abortions.

The documentary explains that many forms of birth control pills contain progesterone, which thins the endometrium, the walls of the uterus, which in turn causes it to become inhospitable to a conceived ovum. This inhospitality may cause a newly conceived human being not to implant in the endometrium and cause an abortion

The documentary instead promotes the use of Natural Family Planning, which is the use of natural periods of infertility to regulate the number of children a family will have. "Modern, scientific, Natural Family Planning in every study published today is more effective than the pill, and it doesn't cause abortions," said Dr. W. Larimore, who was interviewed in the documentary.

Larimore told the interviewer that the pill has "unnatural, high doses of steroids, has potential side effects including a potential breast cancer side effect, and may cause an abortion that you won't even know about until you're in heaven."

The Legislature voted to send the bill (LB675), introduced by Sen. Tony Fulton of Lincoln, to Gov. Dave Heineman for consideration.

The vote came after lawmakers approved an amendment that clarified language in the bill about the qualifications of the health professionals performing the ultrasounds.

Sin Chew Daily quoted the Reproductive Rights Advocacy Alliance Malaysia chairman Dr Choong Sim Poey as saying that although the abortion rate in Malaysia was not higher than that in the Western countries, it was on par with the figure in developing countries.

"The highest number of abortions among Asean countries is in Vietnam, where there is one abortion for every three pregnancies."

"This is because their awareness on contraception is not very high," he said.

Dr Choong said he was disappointed that abortion was not available to women in public hospitals.

"This will cause many women to delay undergoing abortion and encourage the proliferation of such services in the black market."

"The church provides health care, purchases health care and picks up the pieces of a failing health care system," he said. "The Catholic community encounters and serves the sick and uninsured in our emergency rooms, shelters and on the doorsteps of our parishes. One out of six patients is cared for in Catholic hospitals."

But he said the current federal policy of not compelling Americans to pay for abortions with their tax dollars must remain in place under any health reform plan. He also expressed the bishops' opposition to "the inclusion of other procedures or technologies that attack or undermine the sanctity and dignity of life."

"No health care reform plan should compel us or others to pay for or participate in the destruction of human life," Bishop Murphy said. "To preserve this principle is morally right and politically wise as well. No health care legislation that compels Americans to pay for or participate in abortion will find sufficient votes to pass."

He called health care "a basic human right and a requirement to protect the life and dignity of every person."

At 10:30 a.m., most everyone left. I, too, was going to leave when I was hit with a very strong urge to remain in prayer, on my knees, praying continually to the Holy Mother of God to intercede for a young woman who was being bullied by an older man to go into the mill. I had noticed this spiritual battle taking place an hour before and began my prayers for her then. This young girl was being verbally bullied by a taller man and another woman. She, however, steadfastly refused to go into the mill.

Cardinal Francis George, the president of the U.S. Bishops' Conference, released a statement commending President Barack Obama's promise to "honor the conscience of those who disagree with abortion."

Cardinal George expressed his gratitude on Friday afternoon for the President's comments on the importance of conscience clauses which were made May 17 as he spoke to graduates of the University of Notre Dame.

In his address Obama said: "Let's honor the conscience of those who disagree with abortion, and draft a sensible conscience clause, and make sure that all of our health care policies are grounded not only in sound science, but also in clear ethics…"

In his statement, Cardinal George explained that laws have protected the conscience rights of health care works since 1973. "These laws should be fully implemented and enforced," he continued. "Caring health professionals and institutions should know that their deeply held religious or moral convictions will be respected as they exercise their right to serve patients in need."

Looking specifically at Catholic health professionals, the cardinal noted that taking steps to protect their "conscience rights will strengthen our health care system and enhance many patients" access to necessary life-affirming care."

The poll, paid for by Americans United for Life (AUL) a nonprofit pro-life policy organization, showed 82 percent of respondents said they would oppose nominees who support partial-birth abortions in the seventh, eighth or ninth months of pregnancy. Seventy-one percent would oppose nominees that favor using tax dollars for abortions here in the United States.

The latest poll was conducted by the Polling Company of 800 adults from May 17-18 and it has a 3.5 percent margin of error.

The poll, which also found the public does not want President Barack Obama to appoint a pro-abortion activist to the Supreme Court, featured two questions directly about abortion.

A first question asked respondents to identify themselves as either pro-life or "pro-choice" on abortion.

The poll found a plurality, 47 percent, took a pro-life position while 45 percent said they were "pro-choice" when it comes to abortion.

However, a second question, asking respondents to delineate their specific position on when abortion should be legal, found a 14 percent pro-life majority.

MADD was highly effective in a short time without blowing up any distilleries or killing any bartenders. The group made drunken driving a public policy issue by speaking in one loud, clear and rational voice to those in position to do something.

Maybe that can happen in the debate over abortion.

A recent Gallup poll released May 15 found that 51 percent of Americans describe themselves as pro-life, while 42 percent said they were pro-choice. It's the first time pro-lifers showed up in the majority since Gallup began conducting the survey back in 1995.

But pro-lifers should have a goal of changing hearts and minds, not laws.

The movement to reduce abortions will have MADD-type success only when more women, by their own choice, decide that abortion is not an option.

The case being handled by the Alliance Defense Fund was brought on behalf of nurse Toni Lemly who had worked in the St. Tammany Parish Hospital, but sued when she objected to dispensing the "morning after" abortion pill because of her religious beliefs and was demoted.

The hospital's lawyers sought to have her case dismissed out of hand, and when that attempt failed, went to the state Supreme Court to try to obtain that ruling. The high court, however, issued a single-word ruling on the hospital's demands: "Denied."

That means Lemly's complaint now is headed towards a trial, according to the ADF, although there always is the possibility of a settlement being reached.

"The hospital acted unlawfully when it refused to make a reasonable accommodation for Ms. Lemly and instead terminated her fulltime position," said Brian Arabie, a Lake Charles attorney who is allied with the ADF and is working on the case.

Gov. Mark Parkinson made his first decision on an abortion issue Friday when he restored funding for Planned Parenthood of Kansas and Mid-Missouri that the Legislature had cut.

Parkinson struck language in a budget-balancing bill that would have taken $250,000 promised to Planned Parenthood and given it to state and local health departments and hospitals.

Parkinson previously had said his views on abortion were "very similar" to his predecessor, Kathleen Sebelius, an abortion-rights supporter who resigned last month to become U.S. secretary of health and human services. However, this was the first time Parkinson, who had been Sebelius' lieutenant governor, had acted on a bill related to abortion.

"Regardless of one's views on whether abortion should be allowed in the country, hopefully we can all agree that we should make every effort to prevent unplanned pregnancies. Access to affordable family planning services and contraceptives is critical if we are to continue reducing the number of abortions that occur in this state," Parkinson said in his veto message.

A Maryland-based organization is working against the trend of aborting Down syndrome babies by placing those children from around the globe with loving families in the United States.

Reece's Rainbow assists couples in adopting Down syndrome children from other countries. Founded in June 2006, Reece's Rainbow has already found families for more than 175 children with Down syndrome from 32 countries around the world, including Armenia, Haiti, Mexico, Ghana, Russia, Liberia, Vietnam and Korea.

An entirely volunteer organization, Reece's Rainbow prides itself on the fact that 100 percent of every dollar donated goes to the child, family or fund designated by the donor.[..]

Reece's Rainbow is not an adoption agency, but a nonprofit, volunteer organization that serves as a connecting point for Down syndrome children and potential adoptive families. It focuses on saving the lives of children who might otherwise face life, or death, in mental institutions abroad.

The organization also works to help birth families who choose to keep their children, and helps them begin their own Down syndrome associations that fight for the rights and inclusion of special-needs children in their own countries.

The Dominican Republic has come under fire from some of the world's most powerful abortion advocates, aiming to block a proposed constitutional amendment that would enshrine legal protection of the country's unborn.

The International Women's Health Coalition (IWHC), backed by European nations, major foundations and the UN Population Fund, has launched an aggressive campaign to thwart proposed Article 30, which would protect human life "from conception." The country's national assembly approved the amendment in a first reading by an overwhelming majority of 167-32 on April 21st, but it must go through a second reading before final promulgation by the President.

IWHC is seeking to draw Dominicans into street protests and letter writing campaigns to the legislature claiming that Article 30 "violates international agreements signed and ratified by the Dominican Republic, such as the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights [ICCPR], the American Convention on Human Rights [ACHR] and the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women [CEDAW]."

Henry also signed a measure banning abortion based on the gender of the fetus.

House Bill 1595 also has detailed reporting requirements for patients and physicians.

Supporters of the measure said the data is necessary to see if recent pro-life laws are having an impact and fewer women are obtaining abortions.

Nebraska lawmakers have rejected an exception for victims of rape or incest, and decided to advance a proposed law requiring an ultrasound image of a fetus to be displayed to women seeking abortions.

The Legislature voted 38-6 Wednesday to advance the bill requiring those performing abortions to display ultrasound images of fetuses in a way that the women can easily view them.

In light of the president’s speech on the divisive topic at Notre Dame over the weekend, House GOP lawmakers James Sensenbrenner Jr. (Wis.), Chris Smith (N.J.) and John Fleming (La.) sent a letter to the White House on Tuesday praising Obama for saying that he wanted to "honor the conscience of those who disagree with abortion."

"We agree with you that pro-life healthcare providers should have the right to refuse to participate in procedures that they find morally reprehensible," the lawmakers state in the letter.

State police at Hollidaysburg arrested Jonathan Keith Imler Sr. of 303 E. First St., 46, of Williamsburg for attempted criminal homicide and aggravated assault of an unborn child, simple assault, recklessly endangering another person, theft by unlawful taking and corruption of minors.

Imler was arraigned and placed in the Blair County Prison in lieu of bail, police said.

Police also filed juvenile petitions against two juveniles connected to the incident.

The juvenile cases will be heard at a later date, Trooper Jeff Petucci said.

After the girl became pregnant with her 16-year-old boyfriend, he, along with a 17-year-old boy and Imler, stole a bottle of ProstaMate - a liquid farmers use to bring cows into heat or abort a calf - and a syringe from Donald Eastep's farm on Clover Creek Road, Huston Township, between March 23 and March 30, 2008, police said.

The criminal complaint states the three men talked about giving the drug to the girl to kill her unborn child.

"The accused mentioned to the juveniles that it wasn't a good idea but did nothing to stop them from doing it," the complaint states.

The 17-year-old boy used the syringe to put one drop of ProstaMate into a Gatorade drink, which the girl drank after her boyfriend brought it to Williamsburg Community High School and gave it to her March 31, 2008, police said.

Planned Parenthood Affiliates of California has gone on record in favor of AB 6, a bill sponsored by Assemblywoman Lori Saldaña, D-San Diego, which would require firms that hire signature gatherers to qualify state or local initiatives for the ballot to pay an annual fee and register with the secretary of state. The bill also requires such firms to provide a training program for signature gatherers on state laws regarding the initiative process and submit proof of such training to the secretary of stat

The president of the Collegial Medical Association in Spain, Juan Jose Rodriguez Sendin, said on Monday that abortion "is not like eating a piece of candy," but rather is a "traumatic" surgical intervention in which the autonomy of the patient "should be made compatible with the right of parents to be informed."

Speaking to reporters about the approval of a new law on abortion by the Council of Ministers, Rodriguez Sendin said it was an "error" and "unfortunate" that the legal age for an abortion without parent consent was dropped to 16 and that it would create worse problems for families than those that already exist in such cases.

He stressed that parents should be "given the opportunity to learn about the problems their daughters might have in order to help them and console them," pointing out that a girl under the age of 16 having an abortion is not like "eating a piece of candy," it is a "traumatic surgical intervention."

In 2005, World Health Organization (WHO) scientists assigned estrogen plus progestin (combined) hormonal contraceptives (the pill) and combined hormone replacement therapy (HRT) the highest level of carcinogenicity - Group 1. [1]

"But that's not stopping the Willamina High school board (Willamina, Oregon)," said Karen Malec, president of the Coalition on Abortion/Breast Cancer. "According to a news report last week, the school board authorized a nurse practitioner to prescribe the pill for teens during the most cancer-susceptible time of their lives (before first full term pregnancy)." [2]

WHO scientists said combined hormonal contraceptives (HCs) increase women's risks for cancers of the breast, cervix and liver, and they decrease the risks of ovarian and endometrial cancers.

"More than twice as many American women die every year from the first three cancers than the last two, but some health officials foolishly tell women to take a carcinogen - the pill - to prevent cancer!" said Malec.

WHO scientists said, "Most combined contraceptives are taken orally, but they can also be delivered by injection, transdermal patch or vaginal ring." [1] These drugs are also found in the IUD.

In 2006, reviews in the Mayo Clinic Proceedings and the New England Journal of Medicine implicated combined HCs as a risk factor for breast cancer. [3,4]

Combined HRT and combined HCs contain the same type of drugs, but HCs have a larger dose. Women often use HCs before a first full term pregnancy when most of the breast is composed of cancer-susceptible Type 1 and 2 lobules where 97% of all breast cancers start. [5]

Theoretically, the progestin-only mini pill may cause breast cancer too. In the female body, estrogen peaks in mid-cycle stimulating ovulation and again in the luteal phase of the menstrual cycle. Those who take the progestin-only mini pill are exposing themselves to combined hormones, estrogen and progestin.

"I urge school officials to read Irma and Jose Russo's research concerning estrogen and breast maturity and the Breast Cancer Prevention Institute's analyses of their work," said Malec. [6,7,8]

A proposal to change the Tennessee Constitution to allow the state to impose stricter limits on abortion has passed both chambers of the General Assembly but still has hurdles to cross before going to voters, lawmakers say.

The resolution, which passed the Senate in March, was approved 76-22 by House members Monday evening.

The measure -- which says that "nothing in this Constitution secures or protects a right to abortion or requires the funding of an abortion" -- seeks to change the document to void a Supreme Court ruling in 2000 concerning abortion restrictions.

"It just returns the constitution of the state of Tennessee to neutral on the subject of abortion," said Rep. Debra Maggart, a Hendersonville Republican and the resolution's primary House sponsor.

• 10:30 a.m. to 1 p.m: A Face the Truth Tour with large graphic signs and hand-held signs reading "Shame on Notre Dame" and "Obama = Abortion" will be held off campus along Angela Boulevard and Michigan Street in the hours leading up to commencement.


• 2:00 to 3:00 p.m.: Protesters will stow their graphic signs and join the peaceful prayer service taking place on campus during the commencement ceremony. The prayer service, which is taking place in the University's Grotto of Our Lady of Lourdes, a smaller area, will be broadcast to the university's South Quad, where crowds will be waiting.

• Protesters standing along nearly two miles of roadway holding signage with anti-Obama messages and pictures of aborted babies


• Pro-life chanting, prayers and hymns

A new Gallup poll about abortion found that 51 percent of Americans identified themselves as "pro-life," compared with 42 percent who say they are "pro-choice." Gallup says this is the first time that a majority of U.S. adults have identified themselves as "pro-life" since the pollster began asking this question in 1995.

Among women, 49 percent were "pro-life" and 44 percent were "pro-choice."

The survey of 1,015 adults was taken May 7-10 and has a margin of error of 3 percent.

Under the new proposal, besides abortion with no questions asked up to 14 weeks, the procedure would be permitted up to 22 weeks of pregnancy if two doctors certify there is a serious threat to the health of the mother, or fetal malformation.

Beyond 22 weeks, it would be allowed only if a panel of doctors certified fetal malformation deemed incompatible with life or the fetus were diagnosed with an extremely serious or incurable disease.

Supporters of the bill (LB675) say that increasing the chances women view fetuses they plan to abort may make them change their minds and prevent abortions. But opponents of such measures say they are thinly veiled attempts to make women feel bad.

Lawmakers voted 37-5 Thursday to advance the measure to the second round of debate. They spent all day discussing the bill before adjourning for the day at 2 p.m.

In the Bundestag vote on Wednesday evening, 326 delegates voted in favor of the consultation period which includes a doctor's psychological evaluation. Of the 612 parliamentarians involved in the vote, 234 voted against and 52 abstained. Parliamentarians also voted in favor of increased consultations and support for families with handicapped children considering a termination.

Currently, some 600 late-term abortions are performed in Germany each year.

The motion aims to reduce this number by mandating that women receive counseling from a doctor about the medical and psychological consequences of a late-term abortion. The doctor should also inform the patient about living with a physically or mentally disabled child, and point her towards other means of support.

A woman considering a late-term abortion would also have a three-day waiting period between the counseling session and the procedure to give her time to think about her options.

The new law also sets a 10,000-euro ($14,400) fine for doctors who fail to properly advise patients. After being approved by the upper chamber of parliament, the Bundesrat, it should come into effect in January 2010.

Missouri senators approved legislation early Thursday requiring that women seeking abortions be told in person, a day in advance, about the potential risks of the procedure and the development of their fetuses.

Missouri already has an informed consent law requiring doctors to explain the physical and psychological health risks to women at least 24 hours before an abortion is performed.

The bill, passed in the Senate by a 25-7 vote, would expand the information to be provided and require it to be presented face-to-face, instead of over the phone. It also would require health care providers to offer women a chance to see an ultrasound of the fetus and to hear the fetal heartbeat 24 hours before an abortion.

The legislation now goes back to the House, which previously passed a different version of the bill. If the House passes the Senate's revised version before the Legislature ends its 2009 session at 6 p.m. Friday, the legislation would go to Gov. Jay Nixon.

Oklahomans for Life state chairman Tony Lauinger said Wednesday that House members have inserted language that would prohibit human cloning into a bill currently in a joint House-Senate Conference Committee.

The Oklahomans for Life Web site says the bill is expected to be voted on by the House and Senate on Thursday.

Henry vetoed a bill outlawing embryonic stem cell research last month. His veto was later overridden in the House but sustained by the Senate.

Swedish health authorities have ruled that under the current law, a woman is allowed to have an abortion, solely for the purpose of ending a pregnancy when the gender of the fetus is not what a woman wants. Health officials also decided that requests by pregnant women for gender testing, without a specific medical reason are allowed under the country’s laws.

This decision by Sweden’s National Board of Health and Welfare was in response to a Swedish woman who underwent repeat abortions of a healthy fetus because it wasn’t a boy. The woman already had two girls and wanted a boy.

When Congressman Chris Smith questioned Secretary of State Hillary Clinton last month over the Obama administration's commitment to dismantling pro-life laws around the world, Clinton gave an impassioned response for "reproductive rights" that included a description of women in a Brazil hospital she witnessed, "fighting for their lives" after botched abortions. However, when the National Catholic Register asked for details on the trip, Clinton's staff refused to substantiate the claimed visit.

"When I think about the suffering that I have seen of women around the world - I've been in hospitals in Brazil where half the women were enthusiastically and joyfully greeting their babies, and the other half were fighting for their lives against botched abortions," Secretary Clinton told Smith in a House Foreign Affairs Committee hearing April 22. (See: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-gEA97EnxE4)

Department of State spokeswoman Laura Tischler told the Register yesterday that she was "unable to confirm where or when the trip she referred to in her testimony was - where specifically in Brazil she was visiting or when the trip occurred."

Tischler said she referred the question to Clinton's personal staff for a response, but was declined any information to substantiate the visit.

"Three women, ages 19, 25, 26, were suspected of aborting a baby on Monday. They were arrested when community members alerted police about the suspicious abortion," said Superintendent Abie Khoabane.

"What initially happened was this 19-year-old was in an advanced stage of pregnancy.

"These two convinced her to abort this child. She took some tablets for the abortion and the child came out alive. They went and buried this child alive. Hence it is murder," said Khoabane.

Members of the senior class who have decided not to attend their own graduation have invited Fr. Pavone to lead them in prayer at the Class of 2009 Vigil for Life, which will start at 2pm, the same time as the commencement ceremony in which President Obama will be honored.

The Class of 2009 Vigil for Life will take place at the Grotto of Our Lady of Lourdes. The Glorious Mysteries of the Rosary will be prayed and Fr. Frank will give five-minute meditations prior to each decade.

In response to the invitation, Fr. Pavone stated, "In standing with these students, I am standing with the true spirit of Notre Dame: a pro-life spirit, in harmony with human reason and Catholic Faith. The scandal that has been generated does not represent what Notre Dame is all about; it represents a radical betrayal of what Notre Dame is all about. I am encouraged by the pro-life activities of so many student groups on this campus – activities that are carried out all year round."

An undercover audio file provided by Operation Rescue was used by legislators to support their efforts to halt tax money to Planned Parenthood in Kansas.

State Sen. Tim Huelskamp and Rep. Lance Kinzer released the recording of a phone call made by an Operation Rescue volunteer posing as a 14-year old girl. The call was placed to Comprehensive Health of Planned Parenthood, (CHPP), in Overland Park, Kansas, on Tuesday, April 28, 2009. During the call, the supposed 14-year old was heard asking about abortion, pregnancy testing, and birth control options. [..]

After the recording was made public, the Huelskamp Amendment to the state budget, which would redirect Title X money to hospitals and other legitimate medical facilities, passed easily in both houses. This would have the effect of defunding Planned Parenthood in Kansas. The budget now awaits the signature of the new governor, Mark Parkinson, who holds line-item veto power.

At today's National Catholic Prayer Breakfast, EWTN's Raymond Arroyo announced that this new pro-life video ad has "initial acceptance" for broadcast on the closing episode of "American Idol."

Produced by CatholicVote.org as part of its series of "Imagine the Potential" ads, the new ad promotes adoption by highlighting famous people who were themselves adopted.

IntelliGender, the first test of its kind in Australia, claims a 90 per cent accuracy rate in determining whether a baby will be a boy or a girl.

Doctors and the anti-abortion lobby, however, fear the test will be used as a means of sex selection and drive up abortion rates.

The company behind the $95 test, which has been sold in the US since 2006, says it takes 10 minutes and identifies a "confidential element" found in the hormones of a woman pregnant with a girl.

The element is found in very low levels in women pregnant with a boy or not pregnant at all.

Currently, women who want to find out their baby's gender can do so at a routine 18- to 20-week ultrasound to check on the health and development of the child.

Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists president Dr Ted Weaver said there appeared to be no scientific evidence to back the test's claims.

"We're all about women having choices, but we want the choices to be valid," Dr Weaver said.

"The concern we would have is that people would then terminate pregnancies on the grounds of sex selection."

A Jesuit-run hospital in the Colombian capital was fined for refusing to terminate the pregnancy of a woman whose fetus had serious deformities, a women’s rights group said Thursday.

The sanction is the first ever to be imposed for this reason in Colombia and was levied against the San Ignacio Hospital, which at the end of last year said the reason it would not agree to abort the fetus was due to its conscientious objection to that kind of procedure.

The Colombian branch of Women’s Link Worldwide said in a communique that Bogota health authorities fined San Ignacio 11.53 million pesos ($5,165).

"We have found that about 3,000 abortions occur in Knox County each year. We understand it's a sensitive subject, but what we want to do is remember those who were aborted. They were human beings," said Aaron Jones, worship arts pastor at Trinity Chapel, one of several churches of different denominations sponsoring the procession.

Jones said the procession, which started about 10 a.m. near the Knoxville Civic Coliseum and proceeded thru downtown, is also meant to help those involved in abortions grieve their loss or find comfort for their pain.

Participants, including members of the chapel and other local churches, put black flags with white crosses on their vehicles.

Dr. Keyes said upon being released from jail, "I went on campus to bear witness to the truth that the invitation by the University of Notre Dame to Barack Obama is a travesty and abomination against the truth that is characteristic to our Catholic and Christian faith. Obama's actions deserve condemnation, not honor.

"I am issuing a call to everyone of like mind that we must come together now to bear witness to the world, to send a message to destroy this scandal and spread the truth of the Christians' dedication to life.

"I am going back on campus to prayerfully bear witness. Come, join me, let us trespass together so that in our trespasses we might find ourselves fully in obedience to the will of God."

A Japanese computer game in which players rape women and girls, impregnate them and then force them to get abortions has stirred international criticism among human rights groups and lawmakers overseas.

New York-based international human rights organization Equality Now has demanded that the sale of the game, developed by a Yokohama-based firm in 2006, be banned in Japan and overseas.

In the video game, a player gropes two girls, who appear to be teenagers, and their mother while on a train, then rapes the three, impregnating them. The player then forces the three to terminate their pregnancies.

"When one finds oneself in an unexpected pregnancy that can make all the difference of life and death," O'Neill said.

She said the after effects of abortions are devastating. She had three children, but said she had nine miscarriages as a result of her abortion.

"Abortion is not safe," O'Neill said, "not emotionally, spiritually, physically."
She said she suffered from serious depression and guilt after her abortion.

"It took me a long time even after coming to my faith," O'Neill said, "to accept forgiveness for my abortion. Jesus died on the cross for all of our sins, including abortion."

"When I see that picture, the first thing I think of is how special and lucky I am to have God use me that way," Samuel told FOXNews.com. "I feel very thankful that I was in that picture."[..]

Samuel, now 9 and living in Villa Rica, Ga., said the photo likely gave countless "babies their right to live" and forced many others to debate their beliefs on abortion, something he's proud of.

"It's very important to me," Samuel said of the photograph. "A lot of babies would've lost their lives if that didn't happen."

Julie Armas, Samuel's mother, said her eldest son has a "very strong sense of right and wrong" and understands the impact of his unconventional first baby photo.

"He identifies it more in terms of a pro-life message more than anything," she told FOXNews.com. "This photo happened and God used it to show people that this baby in mom's tummy is alive. He's pleased that his photo conveyed that message."

The court plans to hear arguments Wednesday about whether subpoenas issued by former Johnson County District Attorney Phill Kline should be enforced.

In October 2007, Kline filed 107 criminal charges, including 23 felonies, against Planned Parenthood's clinic in Overland Park, alleging it falsified documents and performed illegal abortions. The clinic denies the charges.

A Johnson County district judge quashed Kline subpoenas to four witnesses, and Kline appealed.

The Vermont Workers Center lost a $30,000 grant from a Catholic group because it would not take a stance against abortion and assisted suicide as part of its "Healthcare is a Human Right" campaign.

"It's a major challenge for us, $30,000, we make it go a long way," Vermont Workers Center Director James Haslam said.

The money represents a quarter of the group's total budget. The center has received the grant in years past, but it must be approved by the Catholic Diocese of Burlington every year.

The Vermont Workers Center planned on using the grant to help fund the health care campaign this year. But the Church wanted the group to take a stance against abortion and assisted suicide before it allocated the money.

"In order for the Catholic Church to be involved you would have to indicate with that human right war the right to life and natural death," Msgr. Peter Routhier said.

The Vermont Workers' Center would did not take that step and the funding was not allocated.

After 12 year-old Lia Mills wrote an impassioned defense of the unborn for a school competition, her mother recorded the speech and posted it on YouTube for friends and family to see. Her speech has become a YouTube sensation, garnering over a half a million views. Her video made a tremendous impact, changing hearts and minds across the world. Now, Lia is calling upon her fellow students to join with her and take a stand for life.

Lia's Challenge is our new pro-life video contest for youth. We're asking young people across the country to post their own pro-life videos just like Lia's on YouTube. While we have a few suggested topics, we want youth to be creative and express what's in their hearts! There will be two winners, and each will receive a $1000 scholarship. Lia herself will even be one of our special judges for the contest.

Rep. Bernard LeBas, sponsor of the proposal, agreed to delay a vote for a week in the House Civil Law and Procedure Committee while he worked on language to limit the bill's reach.[..]

Committee members said they supported the intention of allowing health providers to refuse to perform abortions or hand out emergency contraception, sometimes called the morning-after pill, which reduces the chance of pregnancy if taken within three days after sex.

But lawmakers said the first draft of the bill was too sweeping and could limit patients' access to blood transfusions and medications far beyond emergency contraception, like vaccines. They also said it could limit information about available treatment options and could allow health providers to refuse care based on a patient's race or religious beliefs.

"This as drafted is not good legislation. It's over-broad," said Rep. John Bel Edwards, D-Amite.

LeBas said he didn't object to limiting the bill to allow health care providers to refuse to perform abortions or provide emergency contraception, as Edwards requested. Rep. Nancy Landry, R-Lafayette, said the changes should also include a provision that includes patient notification if a doctor or health care provider isn't offering certain services.

SPCA Selangor Animal Inspectors and Save A Stray founder Jacqueline Tsang made another trip to Pulau Ketam and the neighbouring uninhabited island on Monday to check on the dogs that had been abandoned on Pulau Selat Kering.

What they witnessed confirmed their worst fear.

Upon approaching Pulau Selat Kering, the team saw approximately 10 dogs on the fringe of the island. When they moved closer, a horrific sight unfolded. Several emaciated dogs were crowded and hunched around something – they were hungrily feasting on the remains of another dog.

They were fighting amongst each other for a small meal. The stronger dogs dominated, while weak dogs sat at a distance and watched helplessly. Nearby, a weak dog was screaming because several dogs were trying to bite her. The sound of dogs fighting could be heard in the distance intermittently. The dogs were starving, and very skinny – they had not had a proper food source for weeks.

We drove in silence for a few precious minutes, and I felt sand slipping through my fingers. "The point is you are pregnant and you have a choice to make. You can get an abortion and get on with your life, or you can bring this child to term and change at least three lives forever. Nowadays you can choose the parents, and even have a relationship with the child once it's born."

"How would I ever find parents?"

I let out a soft laugh. "I personally know at least half a dozen couples who are desperate for a child."

"Like who?"

I could see our narrow gravel road at the end of a long bend in the highway, and put on the blinker. There's a woman at work, I told her, and then I mentioned the names of a married couple who are friends of the family and want to have a child.

"They do?" The tone of her voice had changed, and I could sense her taking a mental pause as if to view something from a different perspective. The couple are good friends of ours. She has known them for years.

I pulled into the driveway and put the car in park. "Yeah. They're dying to have a child."

"Wow," she said, jumping out of the car. She grabbed her bag out of the back seat and flashed me a grin before disappearing into the house. I followed a few seconds later and found her in the kitchen chatting with my wife, her face now as radiant as I'd seen in a long time. "Okay," she said. "I'll do it. I'll give my baby to our friends."

The initiative sponsors, including former Lt. Gov. Loren Leman, applied last week to start gathering signatures. The measure would generally forbid a girl under 18 from getting an abortion unless the doctor informed at least one of her parents beforehand.

Palin said she plans to be the first in line to sign up. The governor said she even considered sponsoring the initiative herself, but decided otherwise after checking with the state's lawyers.

"I got a preliminary opinion from Law (Department) just giving me a heads up that critics would certainly file an ethics charge against me if I were to sponsor an initiative. So though I maintain I have First Amendment rights just as any other citizen does, I won't flirt with the notion of giving critics more ammunition to keep filing wasteful ethics charges against me, but instead I'll volunteer to be the first signature," Palin said.

The sponsors can start collecting signatures once Lt. Gov. Sean Parnell certifies the ballot language as legal. The goal is to get the initiative on the ballot for the next primary election, which will be in August 2010. That would require the sponsors to gather at least 32,734 signatures before the legislative session starts in January.

"Let me just state very clearly: My position is very similar, if not completely similar, to the governor's position on the abortion issue," Parkinson said during his first news conference as governor.

Echoing other reports of coercion in enforcement of China's one-child policy, Chinese authorities have reportedly forced mothers to abort their children in a crackdown on the country’s underground surrogate pregnancy industry.

One U.S. investigator of China's one-child policy said the alleged coercion was "not surprising." In the latest incident, Reuters reports that three young surrogate first-time mothers were discovered by authorities hiding in a communal flat in the southern Chinese city of Guangzhou. District family planning and security officers broke into the apartment, corralled them into a van and drove them to a district hospital where they were compelled into a maternity ward.

"I was crying 'I don't want to do this'," a 20-year-old woman called Xiao Hong told Reuters. She was pregnant with four-month-old twins.

"But they still dragged me in and injected my belly with a needle," she said, reporting that the incident took place in late February.

She said the government officers had forced her thumbprint onto a consent form before carrying out the abortion.

Another surrogate mother, a 23-year-old from a village in Sichuan province, said officers made her take pills and then surgically removed her three-month-old unborn child while she was unconscious.

"I was terrified," she said to Reuters.

Scott Boie, the Air Force airman on trial for the murder of his unborn baby, was found not guilty of intentionally killing an unborn child late Friday night.

But the jury -- made up of 10 members of the Air Force, called panel members -- did find Boie guilty of attempting to kill an unborn child. He faces a maximum sentence of 26 1/2 years and a dishonorable discharge.

Orange County supervisors voted last week to reinstate a health education contract with Planned Parenthood that they had suspended last month after a debate over abortion.

But the board created a new policy that will make it more difficult for Planned Parenthood and some other community clinics to qualify for the grant in the future.

The new policy excludes health education programs from receiving Tobacco Settlement Revenue grants and says the money can only be spent on direct clinical care. It also prevents any tobacco grant money from being spent on abortions, and says the grants can't fund services provided in the same location where abortions are performed.

A court-martial is under way in Alaska for an airman on charges he laced his wife's food with ulcer medication to force her to miscarry.

Airman 1st Class Scott Boie of Milton, Wis., is charged with assault and causing the death of the unborn child.

Boie's wife, Caylinn, testified he asked her to get an abortion when he found out about the pregnancy last year. She taped a conversation with him in which he allegedly tried to persuade her to induce an abortion.

Boie's attorneys say his wife's history of smoking and troubled pregnancies may have caused the miscarriage last year.

An Elmendorf Air Force Base spokesman, Master Sgt. Demetrius Lester, says the maximum sentence for causing the death of an unborn child is life without possibility of parole.