A Dutch doctor who carried out the termination of a gravely ill toddler's life will not be prosecuted. The decision was announced on Wednesday, 23 September. He told the current affairs programme Nieuwsuur the wait felt like 'a sword of Damocles hanging above your head for almost a year.'
Aged almost two, the child was the first reported case of life termination under a 2024 Dutch rule covering children aged 1 to 12. Belgium has allowed euthanasia for minors deemed capable of discernment since 2014, with no minimum age. This Dutch rule covers children under 12 who cannot request euthanasia themselves. At first, doctors outside the treating doctor's region said the suffering was not unbearable at all times.
