Britain’s Prosecutors’ Draft Guidance Flags Bris Milah as Possible Child Abuse
Bris milah could be treated as a potential form of child abuse under proposed new guidance for prosecutors in Britain, following mounting concern from judges and coroners about deaths and severe injuries linked to the procedure.
In a draft framework prepared by Britian’s Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) addressing “honour-based abuse, forced marriages, and harmful practices,” circumcision is listed among practices that could amount to criminal conduct, The Guardian reports.
The language used in the draft, which was reviewed by the Guardian, has caused alarm within religious communities, with Jewish and Muslim leaders pushing back strongly and stressing the long-standing religious and cultural significance of circumcision.
According to the draft CPS guidance, male circumcision differs from female genital mutilation in that “there is not a specific criminal offence of carrying out male circumcision.”
The document goes on to caution: “However, this can be a painful and harmful practice, if carried out incorrectly or in inappropriate circumstances. It may be a form of child abuse or an offence against the person.”
Concerns over regulation intensified last month after a coroner warned that there are inadequate controls governing who is permitted to carry out circumcisions, following the death of a six-month-old boy, Mohamed Abdisamad, who died from a streptococcus infection in 2023.
That case mirrored earlier findings by another coroner relating to the death of Oliver Asante-Yeboah, who died in 2014 after developing sepsis following a circumcision carried out by a rabbi.
Data from the Office for National Statistics shows that since 2001, circumcision has been identified as a contributing factor in seven deaths of boys under the age of 18. In at least three cases, infants died after suffering catastrophic blood loss: Celian Noumbiwe in 2007, Goodluck Caubergs in 2010, and Angelo Ofori-Mintah in 2012.
Jonathan Arkush, a former president of the Board of Deputies of British Jews and co-chair of Milah UK, an organization that advocates for the Jewish community’s right to perform religious circumcision, said the draft CPS wording gives a distorted picture.
“To suggest that circumcision is in itself a harmful practice, is deeply pejorative and misplaced,” he said. “Any procedure that is carried out inappropriately or without proper controls, including piercing a child’s ears, could be a harmful practice and a possible case of child abuse.”
He added: “We shall certainly be talking to the CPS. I would very much expect that final draft not to include it, as it is so obviously incorrect and/or misleading.”
Arkush, who practices as a barrister, acknowledged that a circumcision performed improperly could amount to abuse, but emphasized that the Jewish community operates under what he described as rigorous safeguards designed to prevent such outcomes.
“The incidence of complications in circumcision performed in the Jewish community is vanishingly rare,” he said. “Circumcision is a core part of our identity. I have never met any Jewish man who thinks they’ve been harmed by circumcision.”
The Muslim Council of Britain echoed the call for stronger oversight while rejecting the notion that circumcision itself should be treated as abusive.
“Male circumcision is a lawful practice in the UK with recognised medical, religious and cultural foundations, and it should not be characterised in itself as child abuse,” the council said.
“However, where procedures are carried out irresponsibly, without proper safeguards, and cause harm, they may rightly fall within the scope of criminal law. The lack of consistent regulation elsewhere creates unacceptable risks, and addressing those risks to protect young boys should be an urgent priority.”
{Matzav.com}
