The Patriarch said, "The argument that a ban would cause an increase in the number of underground abortions is pure nonsense."

In the first ever speech by a head of the Russian Orthodox Church in the Russian parliament (the Duma) Patriarch Kirill of Moscow has called for state funding of abortion to end and action towards a complete nationwide ban.

The Patriarch said, "The argument that a ban would cause an increase in the number of underground abortions is pure nonsense." He called for abortion to be excluded from the list of services covered by mandatory medical insurance. He also said that banning abortion would help address concerns over population in Russia. [23 January, Orthodoxmag]

Other stories:

• Pro-lifers march in Washington D.C.
• House of Representatives passes bill to ban state funding for abortion
• China has the most serious gender imbalance in the world [21 January, The Irish Times]
• Bill banning abortion after 20 weeks fails in the House of Representatives [22 January, The Federalist]
• Methodist human rights lobbyist mocks March For Life [23 January, First Things]