Alfie Evans’ family say they have been left “shattered” by the toddler’s death at the end of a long and bitter legal battle that has reverberated around the world.
The terminally ill toddler died at 2.30am on Saturday at Alder Hey Children’s Hospital in Liverpool, five days after life support was switched off.
Twelve hours later, more than 1,000 mourners and supporters of his parents gathered at a nearby park to release balloons in his memory.
Sarah Evans, his aunt, told the crowd: “Our gorgeous little warrior took his last breath at 2.30 this morning.
“Our hearts are broken. We are absolutely shattered as a family. Thomas just wants to thank you all for the support you’ve all shown.”
She said the family had hoped to bring Alfie home on Saturday after he spent more than a year in hospital.
His mother, 20-year-old Kate James, said she was “heartbroken” and thanked people for their support.
Father Thomas Evans, 21, wrote on Facebook: “My gladiator lay down his shield and gained his wings at 02:30. Absolutely heartbroken. I love you my guy.”
Mourners released balloons to mark his death (Getty Images)
Public figures and politicians from around the world paid tribute to the toddler as flowers, cards and toys were left outside the hospital.
“We fell in love with a little boy we never knew,” one card read. “Alfie will be forever engraved in our heart. Fly high little man.”
The Archbishop of Liverpool, Malcolm McMahon, appealed for well-wishers to give his parents space to grieve.
“All who have been touched by the story of this little boy’s heroic struggle for life will feel this loss deeply,” he added.
“Although the past few weeks have been difficult with much activity on social media, we must recognise that all who have played a part in Alfie’s life have wanted to act for his good, as they see it.
“Above all, we must thank Tom and Kate for their unstinting love of their son, and the staff at Alder Hey hospital for their professional care of Alfie.”
Pope Francis, who met Mr Evans when he flew to Rome in a bid to transfer his son to Italy for alternative medical treatment, said: ”I am deeply moved by the death of little Alfie. Today I pray especially for his parents, as God the Father receives him in his tender embrace.“
European Parliament president Antonio Tajani had also called for courts to allow Alfie to be taken to Italy, as well as the Polish president Andrzej Duda and numerous American conservatives.
As several right-wing commentators accused the NHS of “murdering” Alfie, Mike Huckabee, the former Republican governor of Arkansas, said: “Maybe he would have died even if UK govt had allowed his parents to take their own child to Italy to seek other treatment, but we’ll never know. Alfie is dead. Govt is not God.”
The British government does not intervene in cases relating to medical ethics and was not party to several hearings where UK judges ruled that Alder Hey Hospital was acting in Alfie’s best interests and banned him from leaving the country.
Doctors who gave evidence said a progressive neuro-degenerative disease had caused “homecatastrophic degradation of his brain tissue” and that further treatment would have been futile and “inhumane”.
Alfie started showing signs of development issues in the first seven months of his life and had been in hospital since December 2016 after suffering seizures.
Mr Evans questioned whether nerve cells in his brain could recover but experts testified that the tissue cannot regenerate.
Alfie’s parents lost several rounds of their legal battle in the High Court, Court of Appeal, Supreme Court and European Court of Human Rights before a “one last chance” challenge on Wednesday.
When it was rejected by Court of Appeal judges they pledged to work with doctors in the hope of taking him home and asked their supporters to “return back to your everyday lives”, but the case has made headlines worldwide and sparked angry responses on social media.
Alder Hey Children’s Hospital said staff had experienced “unprecedented personal abuse” as it found itself at the centre of a “social media storm”.
Merseyside Police is investigating allegations of intimidation against patients and staff and officers were stationed at the hospital after protesters attempted to storm inside and block a road.
A spokesman for Alder Hey said: “We wish to express our heartfelt sympathy and condolences to Alfie’s family at this extremely distressing time.
“All of us feel deeply for Alfie, Kate, Tom and his whole family and our thoughts are with them.
“This has been a devastating journey for them and we would ask that their privacy and the privacy of staff at Alder Hey is respected.”
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