Pope reverses Vatican stand on British sick baby case

VATICAN CITY — Pope Francis is calling for the parents of a terminally ill British baby to be allowed to do everything possible to treat their child.

A Vatican statement Sunday shifted the Holy See’s position from earlier in the week, when the Vatican’s bioethics advisory panel had noted the need to do whatever helps a patient but also to sometimes accept the limits of medicine.

Charlie Gard suffers from a rare genetic condition and is unable to breathe unaided. Last week, his parents lost a legal battle to take him to the U.S. for trial therapy.

The Vatican said Francis was following Charlie’s case “with affection and sadness” and was close to his parents: “For this he prays that their wish to accompany and treat their child until the end isn’t neglected.”