A senior Azerbaijani official called on Thurdsay for a ban on abortion in the South Caucasus nation.

A persisting custom of terminating a pregnancy when it is discovered that it is a girl is "savagery," said Khady Radzhabli, head of the Azerbaijani parliament's social policy committee.

"The termination of a child because of its gender can lead to serious consequences," he told reporters in Baku. "This is murder which could not be justified from any point of view."

Azerbaijain's Ministry of Internal Affairs could not be reached for data on the country's birth rate. The parliament, the Milli Mejlis, will table the ban in its fall session.

© RIA Novosti.

Abortions: sad statistics