Sharjah24 – AFP: The governor of Oklahoma on Tuesday signed one of most restrictive abortion laws in the United States, hours after a leaked Supreme Court draft ruling indicated the imminent end to nationwide legal abortion.
"I am proud to sign SB 1503, the Oklahoma Heartbeat Act into law," Kevin Stitt said on his Twitter account. "I want Oklahoma to be the most pro-life state in the country because I represent all four million Oklahomans who overwhelmingly want to protect the unborn."
The bill bans abortions after approximately six weeks. It includes exceptions for medical emergencies.
Stitt's announcement came after the leaked draft ruling indicated the Supreme Court is set to overturn Roe v. Wade, the 1973 ruling that enshrined abortion rights across the United States.
If the draft ruling is confirmed by the court, abortion laws instantly would be left up to individual state legislatures, with as many as half expected to enact bans or new restrictions.
For many women, the potential loss of abortion rights across swaths of the United States raises the prospect of being forced to travel hundreds of miles for the procedure or giving birth in traumatic circumstances.
Republicans like Stitt have pushed hard for years to overturn Roe, and it became only a matter of time after three conservative justices were appointed under former president Donald Trump, shifting the Supreme Court's political balance sharply to the right.
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