Mexico's Supreme Court has declared an absolute ban on abortion unconstitutional.
Ten judges unanimously decided on Tuesday in Mexico City that the right of women to reproductive freedom must not be disregarded when protecting the fetus, the court said.
The decision related to the abortion ban in the northern state of Coahuila, which the court was dealing with.
However, it set a national precedent.
This makes Mexico the most populous country with a Catholic majority in which abortion is decriminalized.
So far no uniform regulation in Mexico
According to the judges, abortion in the early stages of pregnancy, rape, endangering the health of the pregnant woman or an incapable of fetus should not be made a criminal offense.
The court did not define the early stage.
This should be left to the states.
In the North American country with around 126 million inhabitants, there is currently no uniform regulation.
So far, only the capital and four of the 31 states allowed abortions in the first twelve weeks of pregnancy.
At the end of last year, parliament in Argentina, South America, had legalized abortions up to the 14th week of pregnancy. In most other Latin American countries, which are also Catholic, abortions are only permitted in exceptional cases. They are only legal in the smaller states of Uruguay, Cuba, Guyana and French Guiana.