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Alfie Evans: Legal battle toddler dies

April 28, 2018 by  
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ACTION4ALFIE

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Alfie Evans was in a “semi-vegetative state” in Alder Hey Children’s Hospital

Alfie Evans, the 23-month-old toddler at the centre of a High Court legal battle, has died, nearly a week after his life support was withdrawn.

The boy from Merseyside, who had a degenerative brain condition, died at 02:30 BST, his father Tom Evans said.

On Facebook he wrote: “My gladiator lay down his shield and gained his wings… absolutely heartbroken.”

Alfie’s parents lost all legal challenges to a court ruling allowing the hospital to withdraw ventilation.

The boy had his life support withdrawn on Monday after being in a semi-vegetative state for more than a year.

The legal campaign, launched by Mr Evans and Alfie’s mother Kate James, attracted widespread attention and saw them clash with doctors over the child’s treatment.

  • Who was Alfie Evans?
  • When are parents denied the final say?

The case drew international support including from Pope Francis, who asked that “their desire to seek new forms of treatment may be granted”.

Earlier in April, Mr Evans pleaded with him to “save our son” during a meeting in Rome.

A statement from Alder Hey Children’s Hospital in Liverpool, where Alfie was treated, said staff expressed their “heartfelt sympathy”.

“All of us feel deeply for Alfie, Kate, Tom and his whole family and our thoughts are with them. This has been a devastating journey for them,” it said.

It asked those wishing to leave tributes to Alfie to place them at the nearby Springfield Park.

Supporters of Alfie’s parents, known as Alfie’s Army, said balloons would be released at the park at about 14.30 BST and asked for attendees to remain “peaceful and respectful”.

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End of Facebook post by Thomas

The RC Archbishop of Liverpool, Malcolm McMahon, said: “All who have been touched by the story of this little boy’s heroic struggle for life will feel this loss deeply.

“Now it is time for us to give Tom and Kate space to grieve their son’s death and offer our prayers for him and consolation for all.”

The Bradley Lowery Foundation, named after the six-year-old boy who died after suffering from neuroblastoma, paid tribute to Alfie’s parents, saying “they did everything they could for their little boy”.

Alfie, who was born in May 2016, was first admitted to the hospital the following December after suffering seizures, and had been a patient ever since.

His parents, who live in Bootle, wanted to fly the toddler to an Italian hospital, but this was rejected by doctors who said continuing treatment was “not in Alfie’s best interests”.

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Kate James

Alder Hey Hospital said scans showed “catastrophic degradation of his brain tissue” and that further treatment was not only “futile” but also “unkind and inhumane”.

The couple heavily criticised medical staff, with Mr Evans suggesting his son was a “prisoner” at the hospital and had been misdiagnosed.

Hospital bosses were backed by the High Court, which ruled in their favour on 20 February, after accepting medical evidence that there was “no hope” for the youngster.

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PA

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Tom Evans and Kate James contested the hospital’s decision to take Alfie off life support

In a four-month legal battle, Alfie’s parents unsuccessfully contested the ruling at the Court of Appeal, Supreme Court and European Court of Human Rights (ECHR).

Alfie was granted Italian citizenship on Monday, with the country’s government saying it hoped the toddler could have an “immediate transfer to Italy”.

However, two days later the Court of Appeal upheld a ruling preventing the toddler from travelling abroad after life support was withdrawn.

Media captionOn Thursday, Alfie’s father Tom Evans urged campaigners to “return to your lives”

Supporters of Alfie’s parents protested outside the hospital, prompting its bosses to defend staff who they said had endured a “barrage” of abuse.

On Monday, a group of protesters tried to get into the hospital after the ECHR refused to intervene.

Merseyside Police is investigating claims patients and staff had been intimidated.

On Thursday, Mr Evans thanked supporters but asked them “to go home” so the parents could build a relationship with the hospital to provide the toddler “with the dignity and comfort he needs”.

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Summit offers South Koreans rare insight into Kim Jong Un

April 28, 2018 by  
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GOYANG, South Korea — A day after the leaders of the two Koreas met for a summit along their shared border, the emotional, memorable, even funny scenes from their time together are both a bitter reminder of the countries’ seven decades of division and an insight into the mysterious character of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un.

A look at some of the scenes that South Koreans are talking about amid the afterglow of one of the most unusual moments in recent inter-Korean history:

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KIM CROSSING THE BORDER

Kim became the first North Korean leader to set foot onto South Korean land since the 1950-53 Korean War when he stepped into the southern side of the border village of Panmunjom to meet with South Korean President Moon Jae-in on Friday.

The image that lingers is of Kim stepping across the ankle-high concrete slab that forms the military demarcation line at Panmunjom and shaking hands with Moon, both leaders broadly smiling. Kim then took Moon’s hand and led him back across the borderline into the North, where they posed for a ceremonial photo together before returning to the South.

Moon, whose parents were refugees from North Korea during the war, visited the North’s Diamond Mountain resort in 2004 to meet his aunt during a temporary reunion between war-separated families.

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KIM SHORT OF BREATH

After their meeting at the borderline, Kim and Moon moved to a small plaza to inspect an honor guard before walking together for a couple of minutes to the Peace House, the venue for the summit. Despite the relative short bout of exercise, live TV footage showed that an obese Kim was panting heavily through his mouth, his shoulders heaving a bit, as he signed a guestbook.

South Korean media quickly speculated that Kim, 34, is about 170 centimeters (5 feet 8 inches) tall and weighs 130 kilograms (287 pounds), and likely suffers from diabetes, high blood pressure and hyperlipidemia.

In 2014, Kim disappeared from the public eye for about five weeks, triggering a frenzy of speculation about his health. When he resumed his public activities, he walked with a cane. Kim’s father and grandfather both died of heart ailments.

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KIM’S SECURITY

When Kim returned to the northern side of Panmunjom in a black Mercedes limousine for lunch after a morning meeting with Moon, a dozen bodyguards, all wearing black suits and blue ties, surrounded the vehicle and jogged beside it as it made its way to the North.

The men — all tall, their hair cropped short — are likely from the North’s secret service.

Later Friday, as Kim returned to the South, the car moved at a faster speed and the men kept pace, running fast as they enveloped the leader. When Kim rolled back to the North after a farewell ceremony Friday night, the bodyguards reappeared and ran alongside his car again.

A North Korean security worker was also seen spraying disinfectant on the chair and table to be used by Kim at the Peace House while another used a headphone and a black, square-shaped piece of equipment to check for explosives, according to South Korean media reports.

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KIM’S SISTER

Kim’s younger sister, Kim Yo Jong, took a prominent role in the summit. She handed her brother a pen when he signed the guestbook, and took his gloves after he shoveled dirt on a ceremonial tree and a bouquet of flowers that he’d been handed at the border. During the meeting with Moon, she sat next to her brother, scribbling notes.

Her proximity to her brother during most of the summit events Friday added credence to speculation that she’s virtually the No.2 in the North. Kim sent his sister to South Korea in February to attend the opening ceremony of the Pyeongchang Winter Olympics, making her the first member of the North’s ruling family to visit the South since the end of the Korean War.

Kim acknowledged his sister’s popularity in South Korea when he joked to Moon during their talks that she has become a “star in the South,” causing her face to turn red, according to Moon’s spokesman, Yoon Young-chan.

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SILENT TALKS

Another striking moment came when Kim and Moon chatted while strolling slowly to a footbridge in Panmunjom, where a rusty signboard marking the military demarcation line stands. There they sat and had about 30 minutes of private conversation. No one knows what the leaders talked to each other about. The chirping of birds was all that could be heard, according to the live TV footage.

When they returned to the Peace House, they chatted again, but their conversation was largely inaudible.

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JOINT ANNOUNCEMENT

The two leaders’ close body language was also on display. They held each other’s hands and raised them into the air and hugged each other after signing their names on what they called the Panmunjom Declaration, a joint statement following their summit. They also stood at a podium together outside the Peace House and jointly announced the deal in front of officials and pool reporters.

The declaration has lots of accords on improving inter-Korean ties and exchange programs, but lacks any major progress in a U.S.-led international effort to end the North Korean nuclear standoff.

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INTOXICATED KIM

During a dinner banquet, Kim appeared a little drunk, his face red, his eyes unfocused. He didn’t wear his horn-rimmed glasses as what appeared to be champagne was placed on the table before him. Kim’s wife, Ri Sol Ju, and Moon’s wife, Kim Jung-sook, also joined the banquet.

Kim is a big fan of French wine and once drank 10 bottles of Bordeaux in one night, according to media reports citing the Kim family’s former sushi chef.

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This story has been corrected to show that Moon has visited North Korea before.

Copyright 2018 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

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