Poland drops near-total abortion ban

WARSAW, Poland, Oct. 6 (UPI) -- Poland's Parliament withdrew a bill that would have leveled a near-total ban on abortions in the country.

Poland's Sejm, the lower house of Parliament, voted 352-58 against the bill following several day of protests. Lawmakers said the demonstrations, which drew hundreds of thousands of people, gave ministers "food for thought," BBC reported. The Sejm's Justice and Human Rights Committee had earlier recommended the proposal be dismissed.

The rejection comes two weeks after the Sejm voted 267-154 to continue the "Stop Abortion" measure. The pro-life measure would have outlawed abortion except to save the mother's life, in cases of rape or incest or if the fetus is severely ill.