Nottingham

Three arrested over boy's circumcision in Nottingham

A male child is held after being circumcised Image copyright Getty Images
Image caption The boy's mother believes circumcision amounts to MGM, or "male genital mutilation"

Three people have been arrested by police investigating the circumcision of a three-month-old boy.

A 61-year-old man, believed to be the doctor who carried out the procedure, has been arrested on suspicion of grievous bodily harm with intent.

The boy's mother complained to police, saying her son was circumcised without her consent while staying with his paternal grandparents in July 2013.

A 44-year-old man and a woman, aged 47, have also been arrested.

Nottinghamshire Police said they were arrested on suspicion of conspiracy to commit grievous bodily harm.

All three people have been released pending further investigation.

Updates on this story and more from the East Midlands

The doctor previously told the BBC: "It would be inappropriate to comment whilst any investigation is ongoing."

He has not publicly clarified whether or not he had been told the mother had consented to the procedure.

Image copyright Getty Images
Image caption Protesters in the US gathered outside a court in 2015 where a judge where two parents clashed over the right to circumcise their son

The boy was circumcised in Nottingham on 31 July 2013.

His mother originally contacted social services, then contacted police on 24 November 2014.

There was a police inquiry but the force initially deemed it not to be a criminal matter, and the matter was referred to the General Medical Council.

'True suffering'

The boy's mother believes circumcision amounts to MGM, or "male genital mutilation", and is "inhumane".

She says her son, now aged four, has suffered recurring physical problems including inflammation and water infections.

"I am deeply hurt by what has happened to my son and the suffering I have been forced to witness," she said.

"No amount of money in the world could make right what's been done, and my only hope is to raise awareness of MGM and reveal the true suffering this procedure really inflicts on tiny babies.

"My life will never be the same again and I dread my son growing up and learning what happened to him."

Image copyright Getty Images
Image caption Human rights lawyer Saimo Chahal QC is helping the mother

Police reopened the investigation after the mother got help from the anti-circumcision group Men Do Complain and leading human rights lawyer Saimo Chahal QC, who wrote to the force.

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