NORTHERN CYPRUS — DNA tests have revealed that Laura and her partner Beth's two children were conceived using the wrong sperm donors at an IVF clinic in Turkish-occupied northern Cyprus. The couple had specifically requested the same donor for both children to ensure they would be biologically related.

The two women began fertility treatment in 2011 at Dogus IVF Centre in northern Cyprus. Patient coordinator Julie Hodson told them the clinic could import frozen sperm from Cryos International in Denmark. They selected an anonymous donor referred to as "Finn" and told the clinic it was important the same donor be used for both babies.

Laura gave birth to their first child, Kate, nine months after treatment began. When the couple wanted a second child, they returned to the same IVF team and asked to use donor Finn again. Hodson confirmed via email that Dr Firdevs Uguz Tip would reorder Finn's sperm. Beth subsequently gave birth to their second child, James.

After James was born, the parents noticed that his brown eyes were very different from those of his biological mother Beth and the requested sperm donor. James's dark eyes, dark hair and olive skin led his parents to suspect his donor had not been Finn. After nearly a decade, Beth and Laura decided to have their children take a DNA test.

The DNA test results indicated neither child was related to the sperm donor the parents had selected. The test results also suggested the children were not biologically related to each other, despite the couple's request to use the same donor for both pregnancies.

Beth and Laura tried contacting Dr Firdevs Uguz Tip and Hodson but neither responded. The couple's fertility treatment in northern Cyprus, including medication, hotels and flights, cost an estimated £16,000 in total.

Families of seven children believe the wrong sperm or egg donors were used in their IVF treatment at clinics in northern Cyprus. Most of these families have done commercial DNA tests that appear to confirm that the wrong donors were used.

Northern Cyprus is a territory where European Union laws do not apply and is only legally recognized by Turkey. The territory's Ministry of Health oversees its fertility clinics. Northern Cyprus has become a destination for British people seeking fertility treatment abroad, with clinics offering procedures illegal in the U.K., such as sex selection for non-medical reasons.