AKIPRESS.COM - A Catholic former Dutch prime minister, Dries van Agt, has died by euthanasia, hand in hand with his wife Eugenie. They were both 93.

Their deaths last Monday are seen as part of a growing trend in the Netherlands for "duo euthanasia." Although still rare, euthanasia of couples was first noted in a review of all cases in 2020, when 26 people were granted euthanasia at the same time as their partners. The numbers grew to 32 the following year and 58 in 2022, The Guardian reports.

According to the Dutch media, Van Agt – prime minister between 1977 and 1982 and the first leader of the Christian Democratic Appeal party – may have been a Catholic but always chose his own path, along with his wife of 70 years.

The Rights Forum announced the news of their deaths together and hand in hand last week. Director Gerard Jonkman told broadcaster NOS that both were very ill but couldn’t go without one another.

Van Agt had never fully recovered from a brain haemorrhage in 2019.