Circumcision could be child abuse, says new guidance

Emily Pollok  |  UK & Ireland
Date posted:  18 Jan 2026
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Circumcision could be child abuse, says new guidance

Photo by David J Pearson via Flickr / Wikimedia Commons

The practice of circumcision could be considered a form of child abuse in some cases according to revised guidance for prosecutors.

The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) has drafted a document on “honour-based abuse, forced marriages, and harmful practices” that includes circumcision in a list of practices with potentially criminal implications like breast flattening or virginity testing, The Guardian reports.

“To suggest that circumcision is in itself a harmful practice, is deeply pejorative and misplaced,” Jonathan Arkush, co-chair of Milah UK, which protects the Jewish community’s observation of religious circumcision, told the paper.

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