French Alain Cocq accepts palliative care after attempt to broadcast death live

A terminally ill Frenchman who was prevented from broadcasting his own death live on Facebook has now accepted palliative care and backtracked on his promise to starve.

Alain Cocq, 57, began refusing food, drink and medicine on Saturday.

But he told the AFP news agency on Wednesday that he no longer had “the capacity to fight.”

The “right to die” case has been closely followed in France, sparking debates over legislation.

Euthanasia is illegal in France, but doctors can subject terminally ill patients to deep sedation to death in limited circumstances, such as when death is imminent.

Cocq has called for the law to be changed to allow terminally ill people to die as they wish. But some influential groups, including the Catholic Church, oppose euthanasia on moral grounds.

Mr. Cocq suffers from a degenerative disease, which causes the walls of his arteries to stick together. He says he has been in a “terminal phase” for more than 30 years.

In July, he wrote to French President Emmanuel Macron, describing his “extremely violent suffering” and asking for permission to die “with dignity.”

Macron said he was “moved” by the letter, but could not grant the request for euthanasia because “it was not situated above the law.”

“His wish is to request active assistance to die, which is currently not allowed in our country,” he said.

In a Facebook post on Saturday, Cocq announced that he had finished his “last meal,” saying he would refuse food, drink and medicine until his death.

“I know that the days ahead are going to be difficult, but I have made a decision and I am calm,” he said.

But Facebook on the same day blocked his plan to broadcast himself live by slowly dying, stating that it did not allow depictions of suicide.

“Although we respect [Mr Cocq’s] Decision of wanting to draw attention to this complex issue, following the advice of experts we have taken measures to avoid live transmission on behalf of Alain ”, said a spokesman.

Cocq was admitted to the Dijon city hospital on Monday because he was “suffering too much,” a spokeswoman said.

“He still wants to leave but without suffering. It was too difficult,” he told local media.

After eating again, Cocq told AFP on Wednesday that he would be allowed to return home in the next 10 days, where a medical team would be installed.