The US Supreme Court on Friday ended abortion rights in a seismic decision, ending half a century of constitutional protections over one of the most divisive and bitterly contested issues in American political life.
The conservative-dominated court overturned the landmark 1973 "Roe v Weed" ruling that guaranteed a woman's right to an abortion, saying individual states can now allow or restrict the procedure themselves. .
"The Constitution does not provide for the right to abortion; Roe and Casey are quashed, and the right to regulate abortion is returned to the people and their elected representatives," the court said.
In the majority opinion, Justice Samuel Alito said, "Abortion presents a deeply moral issue on which Americans hold sharply conflicting views.
"The Constitution does not prohibit citizens of each state from regulating or prohibiting abortion," he said.
There were three moderate disagreements on the court.
The ruling would potentially set up a slew of new laws in nearly half of the 50 US states that would severely restrict or outright prohibit abortion and force women to travel long distances in states that still allow the process.