Nov 19, 2003 / 22:00 pm
In a bizarre decision, Israel's Attorney-General Eliyakim Rubinstein has issued legal guidelines giving Israeli widows the right to harvest their dead husband's sperm for fertility treatment, reported LifeSiteNews.com.
Only when a husband specifically indicated, during his lifetime, that he would not want this done after his death would a widow's request not be acted upon.
"In a situation where a partner is interested in having a child with the sperm of the deceased it is appropriate to allow her to do so," Rubinstein said. The directive also pertains to men who were in common law relationships.
Under the guidelines, once a woman requests sperm from a dead partner the fertility clinics would be authorized to harvest the dead man's sperm immediately, determining only after the harvesting whether or not the man refused to take part in the scheme while he was alive.
Doctors say immediate action is necessary since they have only 24 to 36 hours after death to harvest sperm, which can then be frozen.