BEIJING — China said on Thursday that it had suspended the work of a scientist who claims to have created the world’s first genetically edited babies, saying his conduct appeared to be unethical and in violation of Chinese law.
The scientist, He Jiankui, announced on Monday that he had used the gene-editing technique Crispr to alter embryos, which he implanted in the womb of a woman who gave birth to twin girls this month. At an international conference on Wednesday, he asserted that he was proud of what he had done.
Xu Nanping, China’s vice minister of science and technology, said Dr. He’s work was still being investigated. But based on news reports, he said, Dr. He appeared to have “blatantly violated China’s relevant laws and regulations” and broken “the bottom line of morality and ethics that the academic community adheres to,” the state broadcaster China Central Television reported on Thursday.
“It is shocking and unacceptable,” Mr. Xu was quoted as saying. “We are resolutely opposed to it.”
The suspension follows international condemnation from scientists who maintain that...