Midrar Ali: Legal battle child 'is brain dead', doctors say

Midrar Ali suffered a significant brain injury during his birth

Doctors treating a baby at the centre of a dispute about whether to continue life support say he is brain dead.

Midrar Ali's father Karwan Ali, 35, and mother, Shokhan Ali, 28, want medics at St Mary's Hospital in Manchester to carry on treating their son.

The NHS trust's lawyer told a judge at the High Court that "tragically" the three-month-old was brain dead.

Mrs Justice Lieven will decide whether treatment should continue at a trial in Preston next week.

Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust wants Mrs Justice Lieven to rule that ending life-support treatment would be in Midrar's best interests.

Its barrister Neil Davy told the hearing at the Family Division of the High Court that keeping Midrar connected to a ventilator was not dignified.

Mr and Mrs Ali were seeking a delay to next week's trial so that they could seek another doctor's opinion about their son's prospects.

Judge Lieven decided on Tuesday that granting such a delay would not be in Midrar's best interests.

Midrar Ali's parents have maintained a bedside vigil

She said three specialists involved in Midrar's care and a specialist from another hospital had examined him and concluded that ending life-support treatment was the right option.

The judge said it was an "incredibly tragic case" and her heart "absolutely goes out to the parents".

"The evidence is that Midrar has suffered brain-stem death," she said.

"The real issue is whether he is dead already."

Mrs Ali broke down when Mr Davy told the court Midrar was dead.

Midrar has been receiving life-support treatment in an intensive care unit since shortly after he was born.

Complications during his birth led to him being starved of oxygen and suffering brain damage.