Overview
- Dutch authorities confirmed that the euthanasia occurred in late 2025 and released fuller medical and procedural details in a September 2026 government report.
- The report says the child was born extremely prematurely, suffered sepsis and extensive, irreversible brain damage, developed severe epilepsy, and showed almost no neurological development by age two.
- The parents repeatedly asked physicians to end their child’s life after doctors and independent consultants concluded that treatment options were exhausted and the suffering was unbearable.
- A regional Euthanasia Review Committee concluded the treating physician acted with due care and the public prosecutor subsequently decided not to bring criminal charges.
- This is the only publicly documented use of the 2024 child-euthanasia provision and its clearance is likely to drive further ethical, legal and political scrutiny of how the narrow safeguards are applied.