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Protesters hold a banner reading 'abortion is a basic right' during a rally in support of abortion rights following the U.S. Supreme Court overturning Roe v. Wade, in Paris, France, July 2, 2022

Abortion restrictions around the world

Updated: March 17, 2023

In the past year, from the United States to Poland, obstacles have been placed on abortion access as conservative lawmakers tighten restrictions on terminations.

Reproductive rights campaigners say legislation that bans or severely restricts abortion does not stop women getting terminations, instead forcing some to get backstreet abortions that can be unsafe and sometimes deadly.

In a debate marked by deep ideological and religious divides, some US economists are now urging policymakers to consider the financial cost of curbing women's abortion rights.

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Protesters gather inside the South Carolina House as members debate a new near-total ban on abortion with no exceptions for pregnancies caused by rape or incest at the state legislature in Columbia, South Carolina, U.S. August 30, 2022. REUTERS/Sam Wolfe
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Protesters hold banners during Abortion Rights Solidarity demonstration, after the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v Wade decision that legalised abortion, outside the U.S. embassy in London, Britain July 9, 2022.
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Abortion rights activists participate in a 2022 Women's March with the theme “We Demand Our Rights” in anticipation of the upcoming U.S. midterm elections on Capitol Hill in Washington, U.S. October 8, 2022. REUTERS/Amanda Andrade-Rhoades
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A woman, who suffered two miscarriages over the last year in an attempt to have a son, squats beside a red bucket washing clothes in her village home in Hisar, India, July 31, 2022. Thomson Reuters Foundation/Annie Banerji
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