Halima Cisse, 25, from Mali, was flown to Morocco to deliver her children after an ultrasound showed she was expecting seven babies – however she ended up delivering nine babies via C-Section on Tuesday. She was flown to Mᴏʀᴏᴄᴄᴏ in March to deliver her children.
Dᴏᴄᴛᴏʀs originally thought she would give birth to seven babies after she had an ultrasound. Cisse spent two weeks in Point G Hospital in the Malian capital of Bamako before she was transferred to Mᴏʀᴏᴄᴄᴏ after the ɪɴᴛᴇʀᴠᴇɴᴛɪᴏɴ of Mᴀʟɪ’s Pʀᴇsɪᴅᴇɴᴛ ᴏғ Tʀᴀɴsɪᴛɪᴏɴ Bᴀʜ N’Dᴀᴡ. She was admitted to the Moroccan ᴄʟɪɴɪᴄ on March 20 and finally gave birth on Tuesday. It is currently unclear if her pregnancy was ᴅᴜᴇ to Iɴ ᴠɪᴛʀᴏ ғᴇʀᴛɪʟɪᴢᴀᴛɪᴏɴ (ⒾⓋⒻ) ᴛʀᴇᴀᴛᴍᴇɴᴛ, which is one of the more common ᴄᴀᴜsᴇs of ᴍᴜʟᴛɪᴘʟᴇ births, how much the babies weigh, or how far along she was in her pregnancy.
Mali’s health ᴍɪɴɪsᴛᴇʀ, Fanta Siby, said:” The newborns and the mother are all doing well. Should all nine babies sᴜʀᴠɪᴠᴇ, the birth would ʙʀᴇᴀᴋ the current ᴡᴏʀʟᴅ ʀᴇᴄᴏʀᴅ set by ‘Octomum’ Nadya Suleman in 2009.” The UK’s Royal College of Oʙsᴛᴇᴛʀɪᴄɪᴀɴs ᴀɴᴅ Gʏɴᴀᴇᴄᴏʟᴏɢɪsᴛs (ⓇⒸⓄⒼ), said Ms Cisse’s birth was an ‘ɪɴᴄʀᴇᴅɪʙʟʏ ʀᴀʀᴇ event but not impossible’. Asma Khalil, professor of ᴏʙsᴛᴇᴛʀɪᴄs and ᴍᴀᴛᴇʀɴᴀʟ ғᴏᴇᴛᴀʟ ᴍᴇᴅɪᴄɪɴᴇ at St George’s Hospital in London and ⓇⒸⓄⒼ spokesperson.
She said:” A ‘ᴍᴜʟᴛɪᴘʟᴇ pregnancy’ is the term used when you are
expecting two or more babies at the same time. It occurs in about one in 80 pregnancies. It’s very positive to see reports that mother and babies are doing well and received the care they needed.” Husband Adjudant Kader Arby stayed behind in the couple’s home country to be with their older daughter while his wife went abroad. He said: “God gave us these children. He is the one to decide what will happen to them. I’m not worried about that. When the almighty does something, he knows why. My family has been overwhelmed by the support we have received. Everybody called me! Everybody called! The Malian authorities called expressing their joy. I thank them… Even the ᴘʀᴇsɪᴅᴇɴᴛ called me.”
