Donald Trump has called for doctors to be held criminally responsible for carrying out terminations in an apparent U-turn after suggesting that women should undergo “some form of punishment” if abortions are banned.

The Republican Presidential hopeful released a new statement amid a growing backlash in the US, where Hillary Clinton called his remarks “horrific and telling”.

Describing himself as “pro-life” in an interview with MSNBC, Mr Trump said he supported a theoretical ban on abortion in most cases.

But in comments subsequently released by Mr Trump's campaign team, he appeared to backtrack on his support for unspecified penalties for women.

“If Congress were to pass legislation making abortion illegal and the federal courts upheld this legislation, or any state were permitted to ban abortion under state and federal law, the doctor or any other person performing this illegal act upon a woman would be held legally responsible, not the woman,” the statement said.

“The woman is a victim in this case as is the life in her womb. My position has not changed - like Ronald Reagan, I am pro-life with exceptions.”

Mr Trump has previously said he is opposed to abortions except in the case of rape, incest and when the life of the mother is at risk.

Arguing in favour of a ban on Wednesday, he said: “You’ll go back to a position like they had where people will perhaps go to illegal places - but you have to ban it...there has to be some form of punishment (for women)...I haven't determined what the punishment should be.”

The comments immediately sparked a huge response in the US, both from supporters in “pro-life” groups who are seeking to tighten abortion laws and from women's campaigners opposing Mr Trump's stance.

Mrs Clinton, the leading Democratic Presidential candidate, wrote on Twitter: “Just when you thought it couldn't get worse. Horrific and telling.”

Mr Trump's political rivals also stepped into the debate.

“Of course, women shouldn't be punished,” Republican candidate John Kasich said, although he also opposes abortion except in specific cases such as rape.

Ted Cruz, the Texas senator currently in second place in the nomination race, said Mr Trump had not thought through the issue.

“What's far too often neglected is that being pro-life is not simply about the unborn child, it's also about the mother,” he said in a statement.

Many critics were citing apparently contradictory statements made by the property magnate in the past, including in a 1999 interview when he called the right to choose a “personal decision that should be left to the women and their doctors”.

“I support a woman’s right to choose, but I am uncomfortable with the procedures,” he wrote in his 2000 book The America We Deserve.

While 49 per cent of Americans believe abortion is “morally wrong,” according to data from the Pew Research Center, 51 per cent feel it should remain legal.

Naral Pro-Choice America called Mr Trump's position ”unhinged“ and warned that he would ”endanger women“ in the event of being elected President.

Vicki Saporta, president and CEO of the National Abortion Federation, told The Independent that the latest remarks were ”more extreme“ than any current or proposed anti-abortion law around the US.

"The last thing we need is to send women to jail just because they've made their own healthcare choices," she added. "I don't think there would be support for these kinds of penalties."

Some anti-abortion groups also distanced themselves from Mr Trump’s initial proposal.

Jeanne Mancini, president of March for Life Education and Defense Fund, said it “is completely out of touch with the pro-life movement” and “against the very nature of what we are about”.

Even before his comments, recent polls have put Mr Trump's negative ratings nearing or even eclipsing 70 per cent among women.

But the Republican candidate has appeared to thrive on controversy, even as his campaign manager, Corey Lewandowski, awaits a court hearing after being charged with assaulting a female reporter earlier this month.

The Wisconsin primary on Tuesday is expected to be pivotal in the race, where Mr Trump has so far won 739 delegates to Mr Cruz's 465. Ohio governor Mr Kasich lags behind with 143.

Additional reporting by AP