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Tue. 8:29 a.m.: Frenchman in vegetative state kept alive after appeal to UN

PARIS (AP) — A last-ditch appeal to the United Nations has forced French doctors to resume life support for a man who has been in a vegetative state for years and whose case has drawn attention across Europe.

Vincent Lambert was critically injured in a 2008 car accident, and his parents and wife disagree on whether to keep him alive artificially. After years of legal battles, a team of doctors decided to stop giving him food and liquids.

But the parents appealed to the U.N. Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, arguing the 42-year-old should be treated as disabled.

Hours after doctors stopped feeding Lambert on Monday, a Paris court ordered a freeze on previous rulings while the U.N. committee considers the case. That process could take years.

The parents’ lawyer told French media that doctors resumed feeding today.

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