European court rejects appeal of parents to continue life support for terminally-ill baby

The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) in Strasbourg, France has rejected a plea made by British parents to continue the life support of their terminally-ill baby.

Chris Gard and Connie Yates, parents of 10-month-old Charlie Gard, made the plea to the European court to allow them to take their son to the U.S. for an experimental treatment.

The parents have previously lost legal battles in the U.K.'s High Court, Court of Appeal and Supreme Court to keep their son on life support, the Daily Mail reported.

On June 19, the ECHR agreed to intervene and allow Charlie Gard to continue receiving treatment at the Great Ormond Street Hospital in the interest of preventing "imminent risk of irreparable harm." But on Tuesday, the parent's final hope was extinguished when the Strasbourg court ruled that their application was "inadmissible."

The majority of seven judges in the European Court backed the rulings of the U.K. courts and declared that the "decision is final."

The ECHR noted that the U.K. courts had concluded that "it was most likely Charlie was being exposed to continued pain, suffering and distress and that undergoing experimental treatment with no prospects of success would offer no benefit, and continue to cause him significant harm."

Charlie, who was born on Aug. 4 last year, is one of few people who suffers from a very rare mitochondrial disease that saps energy from organs and muscles.

The U.K. courts have accepted that it would be "futile" for the baby to have further treatment because he has irreversible brain damage and he is not able to see or move.

A Great Ormond Street spokesperson stated that there is "no rush" to end Charlie's treatment.

"(The) decision by the European Court of Human Rights marks the end of what has been a very difficult process and our priority is to provide every possible support to Charlie's parents as we prepare for the next steps," the spokeswoman said.

"There will be no rush by Great Ormond Street Hospital to change Charlie's care and any future treatment plans will involve careful planning and discussion," she added.

However, Gard and Yates are claiming that they are being rushed and that the hospital has denied their request to allow the baby to die at home.

"We can't even take our own son home to die, we have been denied that, do you not think we have been put through enough?" Gard said.

The parents also claimed that the hospital also said no to the baby dying in a hospice, and turned down their offer to arrange private transport to their home.