Latest news with #infantdeaths
Al Arabiya
12 hours ago
- Health
- Al Arabiya
Works Begin in Ireland to Exhume Remains of Hundreds of Babies Found at Unwed Mothers' Home
Officials in Ireland began work Monday to excavate the site of a former church-run home for unmarried women and their babies to identify the remains of around 800 infants and young children who died there. The long-awaited excavation at the former Bon Secours Mother and Baby Home in Tuam, County Galway, in western Ireland is part of a reckoning in an overwhelmingly Roman Catholic country with a history of abuses in church-run institutions. The home, which was run by an order of Catholic nuns and closed in 1961, was one of many such institutions that housed tens of thousands of orphans and unmarried pregnant women who were forced to give up their children throughout much of the 20th century. In 2014, historian Catherine Corless tracked down death certificates for nearly 800 children who died at the home in Tuam between the 1920s and 1961 – but could only find a burial record for one child. Investigators later found a mass grave containing the remains of babies and young children in an underground sewage structure on the grounds of the home. DNA analysis found that the ages of the dead ranged from 35 weeks gestation to 3 years old. A major inquiry into the mother-and-baby homes found that, in total, about 9,000 children died in 18 different mother-and-baby homes, with major causes including respiratory infections and gastroenteritis, otherwise known as the stomach flu. The sisters who ran the Tuam home had offered a profound apology and acknowledged that they had failed to protect the inherent dignity of women and children housed there. 'It's a very, very difficult, harrowing story and situation. We have to wait to see what unfolds now as a result of the excavation,' Irish Prime Minister Micheál Martin said Monday. Daniel MacSweeney, who leads the exhumation of the babies' remains at Tuam, said that survivors and family members will have an opportunity to view the works in coming weeks. 'This is a unique and incredibly complex excavation,' he said in a statement, adding that the memorial garden at the site will be under forensic control and closed to the public from Monday. Forensic experts will analyze and preserve remains recovered from the site. Any identified remains will be returned to family members in accordance with their wishes, and unidentified remains will be buried with dignity and respect, officials said. The works are expected to take two years to complete.
The Independent
12 hours ago
- Health
- The Independent
Works begin in Ireland to exhume remains of hundreds of babies found at unwed mothers' home
Officials in Ireland began work Monday to excavate the site of a former church-run home for unmarried women and their babies to identify the remains of around 800 infants and young children who died there. The long-awaited excavation at the former Bon Secours Mother and Baby Home in Tuam, County Galway in western Ireland, is part of a reckoning in an overwhelmingly Roman Catholic country with a history of abuses in church-run institutions. The home, which was run by an order of Catholic nuns and closed in 1961, was one of many such institutions that housed tens of thousands of orphans and unmarried pregnant women who were forced to give up their children throughout much of the 20th century. In 2014, historian Catherine Corless tracked down death certificates for nearly 800 children who died at the home in Tuam between the 1920s and 1961 — but could only find a burial record for one child. Investigators later found a mass grave containing the remains of babies and young children in an underground sewage structure on the grounds of the home. DNA analysis found that the ages of the dead ranged from 35 weeks gestation to 3 years. A major inquiry into the mother-and-baby homes found that in total, about 9,000 children died in 18 different mother-and-baby homes, with major causes including respiratory infections and gastroenteritis, otherwise known as the stomach flu. The sisters who ran the Tuam home had offered a 'profound apology' and acknowledged that they had failed to 'protect the inherent dignity' of women and children housed there. 'It's a very, very difficult, harrowing story and situation. We have to wait to see what unfolds now as a result of the excavation," Irish Prime Minister Micheal Martin said Monday. Daniel MacSweeney, who leads the exhumation of the babies' remains at Tuam, said that survivors and family members will have an opportunity to view the works in coming weeks. 'This is a unique and incredibly complex excavation," he said in a statement, adding that the memorial garden at the site will be under forensic control and closed to the public from Monday. Forensic experts will analyze and preserve remains recovered from the site. Any identified remains will be returned to family members in accordance with their wishes, and unidentified remains will be buried with dignity and respect, officials said. The works are expected to take two years to complete.
Washington Post
19 hours ago
- Washington Post
Works begin in Ireland to exhume remains of hundreds of babies found at unwed mothers' home
LONDON — Officials in Ireland began work Monday to excavate the site of a former church-run home for unmarried women and their babies to identify the remains of some 800 infants and young children who died there. The long-awaited excavation at the former Bon Secours Mother and Baby Home in Tuam, County Galway in western Ireland, is part of a reckoning in an overwhelmingly Roman Catholic country with a history of abuses in church-run institutions.
Associated Press
19 hours ago
- Health
- Associated Press
Works begin in Ireland to exhume remains of hundreds of babies found at unwed mothers' home
LONDON (AP) — Officials in Ireland began work Monday to excavate the site of a former church-run home for unmarried women and their babies to identify the remains of some 800 infants and young children who died there. The long-awaited excavation at the former Bon Secours Mother and Baby Home in Tuam, County Galway in western Ireland, is part of a reckoning in an overwhelmingly Roman Catholic country with a history of abuses in church-run institutions. The home, which was run by an order of Catholic nuns and closed in 1961, was one of many such institutions that housed tens of thousands of orphans and unmarried pregnant women who were forced to give up their children throughout much of the 20th century. In 2014, historian Catherine Corless tracked down death certificates for nearly 800 children who died at the home in Tuam between the 1920s and 1961 — but could only find a burial record for one child. Investigators later found a mass grave containing the remains of babies and young children in an underground sewage structure on the grounds of the home. DNA analysis found that the ages of the dead ranged from 35 weeks gestation to 3 years. A major inquiry into the mother-and-baby homes found that in total, some 9,000 children died in 18 different mother-and-baby homes, with major causes including respiratory infections and gastroenteritis, otherwise known as the stomach flu. Daniel MacSweeney, who leads the exhumation of the babies' remains at Tuam, said survivors and family members will have an opportunity to view the works in coming weeks. 'This is a unique and incredibly complex excavation,' he said in a statement, adding that the memorial garden at the site will be under forensic control and closed to the public from Monday. Forensic experts will analyze and preserve remains recovered from the site. Any identified remains will be returned to family members in accordance with their wishes, and unidentified remains will be buried with dignity and respect, officials said. The works are expected to take two years to complete.
Daily Mail
20-05-2025
- Daily Mail
Man cleared of preventing burial of two babies after their bodies were found at house on quiet street
A man has been cleared of hiding the deaths of two babies who were found dead at a home. Zilvinas Ledovskis, 50, of Phoebe Road in Swansea, south Wales, was held with his ex-partner, Egle Zilinskaite, 30, over the grim discovery of the babies in their former home. The van driver was due to face trial later this year charged with two counts of concealing the birth of a child and two counts of preventing the lawful and decent burial of a dead body. Following a review of the evidence, the van driver was found not guilty at a hearing before Cardiff Crown Court today, after the prosecution said it would be presenting no evidence against him. Zilinskaite, 31, of Crwys Road, Cardiff, pleaded guilty to the charges in April last year and is due to be sentenced later this year. Addressing Mr Ledovskis, Judge Tracey Lloyd-Clarke, the Recorder of Cardiff, said: 'The prosecution has offered no evidence against you and accordingly I direct not guilty verdicts to be entered. 'That concludes the proceedings so far as you are concerned.' The charges relate to the discovery of two babies at an end-of-terrace home in Maes-Y-Felin, Wildmill, Bridgend, in November 2022. The two children, previously referred to as Baby A and Baby B in court, died some time between January 1 2017 and November 26 2022.
