A 23-year-old woman in Zimbabwe has been charged with deliberately transmitting HIV to her friend's baby by breastfeeding him, reports say. 

The HIV positive woman from Harare reportedly infected the 10-month-old boy when the mother gave the child to her to babysit in August. 

Zimbabwean media reports say when the child started crying while playing with other kids, the suspect who has not been identified for purposes of confidentiality breastfed him in the presence of the other children.

She allegedly knew that she was HIV positive at the time of the babysitting but ignored the risk and went ahead to breastfeed the child. 

The baby’s mother later filed a complaint with the police after one of the children who witnessed the incident informed her.

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It is unclear if she was aware of her friend’s HIV status before leaving her child with her to babysit and whether she weighed the risks involved.

According to the Zimbabwean state-owned media, the suspect appeared at Harare Magistrates' Court at the end of last month and was initially charged with ill-treatment of a minor under the Children's Act.

The suspect has been charged with deliberate transmission of HIV and was granted Z$500 (£1) bail ahead of her trial on October 19.

Whether she is found guilty after the trial or not, an innocent child has been put in a condition that he might avoid if he was old enough to take care of his safety.