A mother who breastfeeds her 6-year-old daughter, says she has been called a paedophile after sharing her story online.
Maha Al Musa, 52, says she has never been personally attacked when breastfeeding Aminah in public, however she has received hurtful comments online.
"I've been called a peadophile," the mum-of-three told Channel 9's Inside Story.
Al Musa, who lives in Byron Bay, Australia, with her three children and Scottish-born musician partner John Hamilton, believes the online backlash she has received goes further than simply being criticism of extended breastfeeding, she says it is an attack "on the feminine".
"People can say whatever they like. I know what I am doing as a mother," she said.
"I've raised three beautiful healthy intelligent well-adjusted children and that's all that matters to me.
"My heart goes out to people who criticise me and I respect people's criticism. [But] this isn't about breastfeeding children. This is about attack and disrespect of the feminine."
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Al Musa, has previously told the press that she has no plans to stop breastfeeding her daughter until she is ready: "I'll breastfeed until my daughter's 10 if that's what she wants," she said.
However, that day may be coming sooner than Al Musa had expected, as on 1 August she posted a Facebook status saying her daughter had told her she was ready to stop breastfeeding during the day.
"Allowing a child's natural term BF [breastfeeding] development to progress naturally without force," Al Musa wrote.
"My daughter a couple of weeks ago said she felt ready to stop breastfeeding but only maybe do it at night.
"I told her to do what works for her and I fully support her decision."
"This week she has four loose teeth. She has been breastfeeding at night sometimes for just a minute or two and other nights a little longer and occasional no breastfeeding and in a few months she will be seven.
"How interesting that the natural wean age often corresponds with teeth loss and the age of 7-8."
Al Musa weaned her two older children, Kailash, 16, and Tariq, 13, off breast milk when they were two.
