Alex Trelinski
AN ALMERIA baby died on Sunday after a ‘botched’ home circumcision demanded by his parents.
His mother and father- originally from Mali- and a third person who performed the procedure have been arrested by the Guardia Civil in Roquetas de Mar.
All three appeared before a Roquetas judge on Tuesday, with the parents bailed but the ‘healer’ remanded into custody.
The man brought in to carry out the circumcision had no medical background.
Investigations are continuing with the trio facing negligent homicide charges.
A search of the family’s home was carried out on Monday afternoon.
The baby boy- aged 45 days- suffered a serious loss of blood and his parents took him to the Roquetas de Mar Norte health centre but medics were unable to save him.
The sub-delegate of the Government in Almeria, Jose María Martín, expressed his ‘shock and regret’ over the death.
He praised the ‘professionalism’ of the Guardia Civil investigation and health staff who tried to help the baby.
“I express the commitment of the Government of Spain to protect children against this reprehensible practice which will be prosecuted,” he added.
It’s not the first case of its kind in Spain with a six-month-old baby dying in similar circumstances at a Zaragoza property in 2008.
The parents were handed down 18 month jail terms.
Three years later, a Valencia baby aged just a month bled to death in a hospital after friends of the parents performed a circumcision.
In 2017, a man was arrested in Murcia who pretended to be a doctor and offered home circumcisions for children at €120.
A police probe uncovered he sterilised instruments in a dishwasher and gave anaesthetics to minors without any consultation or tests to work out any potential allergies or adverse reactions.
The procedure is linked to various cultures and religions, and is not dangerous if it is performed by medical professionals.
It has been shown to bring health benefits, reducing the chances of urinary tract infections.
