US judge blocks Mississippi ‘heartbeat’ abortion ban

Washington: A US federal judge Friday blocked Mississippi´s strict abortion law which would have banned the procedure after six weeks of pregnancy.

The bill banning abortion where a heartbeat is detectable -- from six weeks -- was passed in March and was due to go into effect on July 1.

"Here we go again. Mississippi has passed another law banning abortions prior to viability," district judge Carlton Reeves wrote in his order.

"The parties have been here before. Last spring, plaintiffs successfully challenged Mississippi´s ban on abortion after 15 weeks.

The Court ruled that the law was unconstitutional and permanently enjoined its enforcement. The State responded by passing an even more restrictive bill," Reeves said.

Last year, the state passed a law banning abortion after 15 weeks of pregnancy, but it was blocked before Reeves ruled in November that it violated women´s rights.

The new "Heartbeat Bill" which was signed into law by state Governor Phil Bryant makes exceptions for medical complications, but not for cases of incest or rape.

Earlier in the week Reeves heard arguments from advocates for Mississippi's only abortion clinic.

The ban "threatens imCongress backs Gandhi after poll defeat mediate harm to women´s rights, especially considering most women do not seek abortion services until after 6 weeks," Reeves wrote in his order.

"Allowing the law to take effect would force the clinic to stop providing most abortion care."

Bryant said he was disappointed at the court ruling.

"As governor I´ve pledged to do all I can to protect life. Time and time again the Legislature and I have done just that," he said in a statement.

"I will encourage the attorney general to seek immediate review of the preliminary injunction."

More than a dozen states have adopted laws banning or drastically curtailing access to abortion which was legalized in the landmark 1973 US Supreme Court ruling Roe v Wade.

In Alabama, Planned Parenthood and the American Civil Liberties Union filed a lawsuit Friday against the southern state´s new near-total ban on abortion.