Paris - The French health minister has stepped up pressure for a worldwide ban on human cloning with an attack on Dr Severino Antinori and his plans to produce the world's first "photocopy" babies.
In an article in the newspaper Le Monde, Health Minister Bernard Kouchner said he was shocked by the apparent apathy of the scientific community after the Italian doctor revealed his controversial project in Washington earlier this week.
France and Germany are asking UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan to call an emergency debate next month for the rapid drafting of a convention to prohibit human cloning throughout the world.
Mr Kouchner said he was stunned by the "cowardly" reactions of scientists who gathered on Tuesday to hear the doctor's ideas. "The Italian medical profession would do honourably if it immediately prohibited Mr Antinori from practising medicine in his country."