Chinese scientist successfully cloned two monkeys

For the first time after nearly a century a group Chinese scientist used the controversial cloning that created "Dolly" the first cloned sheep to create two cloned monkeys identical in every aspects down to the cellular level . The cloned monkeys are names "Zhong Zhong " and " Hua Hua".

"With this accomplishment we are one step away from cloning humans " said Mumming Poo of Chinese Academy of Science in Beijing. Since "Dolly" the first cloned sheep in 1996 scientists have cloned a dozen animals but cloning hominid species remained a challenge until now.

With the same biomedical technology used to clone monkeys, humans can now be successfully cloned in principle but the scientific team said they have no intention of human cloning in near future because of socio- ethical reasons.

At present human cloning is outlawed in many developed countries but according to Stanford University law professor Henry Greeny "Cloning a genetic duplicate of a dead child of grieving parents present a strong argument in favor of human cloning .