A Dutch doctor who has devoted her career to helping women safely terminate pregnancies in countries where it is illegal or difficult to access abortion has sued the US government for allegedly blocking her American patients from getting abortions by seizing their prescriptions.

Dr Rebecca Gomperts, who prescribes abortion drugs to patients around the world, filed a lawsuit in federal court in Idaho on Monday.

The lawsuit asked a judge to stop the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) from taking any steps that would prevent her patients from accessing abortion-inducing drugs.

“Her patients are most often young, some even as young as 14 years old, poor and powerless,” Dr Gomperts' lawyer, Richard Hearn, said.

“They are almost always victims of rape, emotional coercion by men holding power over them and/or physical abuse. For many, obtaining a medical abortion from Dr Gomperts is not only their best option, it is their only option for safely ending their pregnancies.”

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Kay Ivey last week, includes no exceptions for cases of rape and incest, outlawing all abortions except when necessary to prevent serious health problems for the woman. Though women are exempt from criminal and civil liability, the new law punishes doctors for performing an abortion, making the procedure a Class A felony punishable by up to 99 years in prison (Photo by Elijah Nouvelage/Getty Images) Elijah Nouvelage Getty Protests across US after abortion laws enforced Georgia ATLANTA, GA - MAY 21: Melissa Simpson snaps her fingers in support of a speaker during a protest against recently passed abortion ban bills at the Georgia State Capitol building, on May 21, 2019 in Atlanta, Georgia. The Georgia "heartbeat" bill would ban abortion when a fetal heartbeat is detected. The Alabama abortion law, signed by Gov. Kay Ivey last week, includes no exceptions for cases of rape and incest, outlawing all abortions except when necessary to prevent serious health problems for the woman. Though women are exempt from criminal and civil liability, the new law punishes doctors for performing an abortion, making the procedure a Class A felony punishable by up to 99 years in prison (Photo by Elijah Nouvelage/Getty Images) Elijah Nouvelage Getty Protests across US after abortion laws enforced Missouri Thousands of demonstrators march in support of Planned Parenthood and pro-choice as they protest a state decision that would effectively halt abortions by revoking the license of the last center in the state that performs the procedure, during a rally in St. Louis, Missouri, May 30, 2019. (Photo by SAUL LOEB / AFP) (Photo credit should read SAUL LOEB/AFP/Getty Images) SAUL LOEB AFP/Getty Protests across US after abortion laws enforced Washington, DC WASHINGTON, DC - MAY 23: People wait for the start of a news conference regarding womenâ€™s health care, on Capitol Hill May 23, 2019 in Washington, DC. 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(Photo by Emily KASK / AFP) (Photo credit should read EMILY KASK/AFP/Getty Images) EMILY KASK AFP/Getty Protests across US after abortion laws enforced Missouri Thousands of demonstrators march in support of Planned Parenthood and pro-choice as they protest a state decision that would effectively halt abortions by revoking the license of the last center in the state that performs the procedure, during a rally in St. Louis, Missouri, May 30, 2019. (Photo by SAUL LOEB / AFP) (Photo credit should read SAUL LOEB/AFP/Getty Images) SAUL LOEB AFP/Getty Protests across US after abortion laws enforced Missouri TOPSHOT - Thousands of demonstrators march in support of Planned Parenthood and pro-choice as they protest a state decision that would effectively halt abortions by revoking the license of the last center in the state that performs the procedure, during a rally in St. Louis, Missouri, May 30, 2019. (Photo by SAUL LOEB / AFP) (Photo credit should read SAUL LOEB/AFP/Getty Images) SAUL LOEB AFP/Getty Protests across US after abortion laws enforced Missouri Pro-choice supporters and staff of Planned Parenthood hold a rally outside the Planned Parenthood Reproductive Health Services Center in St. Louis, Missouri, May 31, 2019, the last location in the state performing abortions, after a US Court announced the clinic could continue operating. - A US Court on May 31, 2019 blocked Missouri from closing the clinic. (Photo by SAUL LOEB / AFP) (Photo credit should read SAUL LOEB/AFP/Getty Images) SAUL LOEB AFP/Getty Protests across US after abortion laws enforced Washington, DC Abortion rights activists rally in front of the US Supreme Court in Washington, DC, on May 21, 2019. - Demonstrations were planned across the US on Tuesday in defense of abortion rights, which activists see as increasingly under attack. The "Day of Action" rallies come after the state of Alabama passed the country's most restrictive abortion ban, prohibiting the procedure in all cases, even rape and incest, unless the mother's life is at risk. Alabama is among about 14 states which have adopted laws banning or drastically restricting access to abortion, according to activists. (Photo by Andrew CABALLERO-REYNOLDS / AFP) (Photo credit should read ANDREW CABALLERO-REYNOLDS/AFP/Getty Images) ANDREW CABALLERO-REYNOLDS AFP/Getty Protests across US after abortion laws enforced Georgia ATLANTA, GA - MAY 21: Heather Masson, left, and Victoria Jernigan hold signs promoting a woman's right to choose during a protest against recently passed abortion ban bills at the Georgia State Capitol building, on May 21, 2019 in Atlanta, Georgia. The bill would ban abortion when a fetal heartbeat is detected. The Alabama abortion law, signed by Gov. Kay Ivey last week, includes no exceptions for cases of rape and incest, outlawing all abortions except when necessary to prevent serious health problems for the woman. Though women are exempt from criminal and civil liability, the new law punishes doctors for performing an abortion, making the procedure a Class A felony punishable by up to 99 years in prison (Photo by Elijah Nouvelage/Getty Images) Elijah Nouvelage Getty Protests across US after abortion laws enforced Alabama Cristina Castor (L) and Julian Kersh pose for a portrait in Ingram Park in Birmingham, Alabama, May 19, 2019 during the March for Reproductive Freedom. - "If this goes all the way and flips Roe v Wade at that point it just seems like where is this going to stop," Kersh said. The state of Alabama passed a near-total abortion ban on May 14, 2019 making it the most restrictive law in the United States. (Photo by Seth HERALD / AFP) (Photo credit should read SETH HERALD/AFP/Getty Images) SETH HERALD AFP/Getty

Dr Gomperts, who has travelled the world delivering abortion drugs by drone and boat, started an organisation called Aid Access in early 2018. It helps women seeking first-trimester abortions – those which take place before the 13th week of the pregnancy.

She prescribes abortion-inducing medication via the Aid Access website and then the organisation provides women with information on how to fill their prescriptions using a merchant prescription drug exporter based in India. The pills are then shipped to patients’ homes.

India’s laws allow the exporter to legally export small quantities of drugs for a patient’s personal use.

According to the lawsuit, more than 40,000 women have contacted Aid Access since the organisation started, including roughly 37,000 women from the US.

Dr Gomperts has prescribed the abortion-inducing drugs to more than 7,000 of those – including roughly 40 women in Idaho, where the lawsuit was filed.

The doctor claims in the lawsuit that federal officials seized three to 10 doses of abortifacients she has prescribed in the past six months and alleges the government has blocked payments for some of the doses.

The FDA issued a warning letter to Aid Access in March – accusing it of misbranding the drugs and facilitating their improper distribution. She stopped providing medical abortions for women in America for almost two months after getting the letter but restarted the practice in May, according to the lawsuit.

“For many women seeking to terminate their unwanted pregnancies prior to viability, the only practical option is found on the internet,” Dr Gomperts and her attorney, Richard Hearn, wrote in the lawsuit.

There is a dearth of abortion providers in many rural states and there are many women who do not have the money and means to travel to other states to have their pregnancies terminated.

Abortion rights campaigners argue the procedure is already very difficult to access for huge numbers of Americans – particularly people of colour and those on a low wage. While opponents of abortion have become increasingly emboldened in their efforts to roll back women’s reproductive rights since Donald Trump entered the White House in January 2017, the issue predates the Trump administration.

Dr Gomperts launched Women on Waves in 1991 and provided reproductive health care and abortions in international waters to circumvent countries' restrictive laws.

Those wanting to terminate a pregnancy are generally faced with two options: a surgical abortion which sees the embryo or foetus physically removed from the womb, or a non-surgical medical abortion in which medication is essentially used to induce a miscarriage in the first few weeks of a pregnancy.

The drugs typically used for a medication abortion – misoprostol and mifepristone – are highly regulated by the FDA and doctors in America must have a speciality license to prescribe them.

“Everyday we get so many emails from women who are desperate for help and are desperate to have found somebody that can help them whether they have money or not,” Dr Gomperts told The Independent in a previous interview.