Two Syrian refugees who wanted their dying daughter to continue receiving life-saving treatment have lost a High Court battle. Experts told Mr Justice Hayden the six-year-old has a rare and incurable neurological condition.
They said she should be moved to a palliative care regime. Her parents, who left Syria eight years ago and claimed political asylum in Britain, disagreed and wanted her to receive "long-term ventilation".
They wanted to care for her at home with a portable ventilator. Today (August 24), the judge ruled against the couple and concluded that life-support treatment should end.
He said the "brutal unfairness" of what happened to the youngster was a "painful event to consider". But he said evidence showed she was "beyond medical help" and the time had come for her parents to "engage" with a palliative care plan.
Mr Justice Hayden finished hearing evidence at a trial in the Family Division of the High Court in London earlier this week. The girl is in the care of the Birmingham Women's and Children's NHS Foundation Trust.
Trust bosses asked Mr Justice Hayden to decide what moves were in the girl's best interests. He said the girl cannot be identified publicly, with her parents against her being named in the media.
Mr Justice Hayden was told the girl was born in Lebanon after her parents left Syria. She fell ill about four years ago after arriving in England.
"The brutal unfairness of what has happened to (the girl) following everything else that this family have experienced is painful even to bear," said Mr Justice Hayden in his ruling. "Nobody can imagine how they feel."
But he added: "There is no prospect that home ventilation can achieve any medical benefit for (her)." No treatment could "make her better", he said.
"She is, in truth, beyond medical help," he added. "But she is not beyond physical burden.
"The time has now come for the parents to engage with a palliative care plan."
