A former doctor has been sentenced to five years and seven months in prison after a court heard that he used rusty medical instruments to carry out circumcisions on young boys and failed to provide them with enough pain relief.
Mohammad Siddiqui, 58, from Birmingham visited homes to conduct circumcisions. Once a qualified doctor he was struck off but still carried out the ops.
He used unsterilised tools, leaving many boys in agony, one was taken to hospital.
Guilty of ABH he was jailed for 5 years.… pic.twitter.com/ZoV25wdtPE— David Atherton (@DaveAtherton20) January 21, 2025
58-year-old Mohammad Siddiqui admitted to "painful cruelty to children" during a trial after he was accused of failing to sterilize his medical toolkit properly when he ran his mobile circumcision service, with authorities finding several medical items and tools in his car, including one with a “hook and serrated wheel showing signs of rust… and skin on it.”
The Southwark Crown Court heard that Siddiqui was a practicing doctor at the University Hospital Southampton NHS Foundation Trust when he began visiting homes to carry out circumcisions for profit within the Muslim community.
He was later suspended and struck off by the General Medical Council (GMC). Still, Siddiqui continued to carry out circumcisions anyway, which “ignored” basic hygiene rules and even left one boy needing to be taken to the hospital by ambulance.
It’s horrifying that someone in a position of trust like a doctor could act with such disregard for safety and well-being, especially involving children. The fact that he continued despite being struck off shows how broken the system can be when it comes to accountability.
— Robert Bird (@BobMacBobFace) September 6, 2024
Originally from Birmingham, Siddiqui pleaded guilty in October last year to 25 charges, including assault occasioning actual bodily harm and cruelty to a person under 16. The charges related to the offenses committed across the south of England and the West Midlands, and some of his procedures even left "screaming" in agony, the Inner London Crown Court also heard on January 15th.
Prosecutor Ben Douglas-Jones KC said Siddiqui carried out his procedures “as quickly as possible to maximize profits,” adding that the former doctor “cut corners” and “caused unnecessary pain, suffering, cruelty, and risk.”
Police also found a “circumcision immobilizer” in the back of his Toyota car, a device used to hold children in place during circumcisions, something considered unacceptable in NHS practice.
I am surprised he didn't ask to be tried in a Sharia Court, assuming that is an option?
— Woodsy (@HunkyPig) September 6, 2024
Subsequent investigations revealed many of Siddiqui’s instruments had not been adequately sterilized, according to Douglas-Jones. Jurors heard that he used an anesthetic cream on some of his patients but often began procedures just “a few minutes” after administering it.
A boy who was 15 years old when Siddiqui circumcised him was left with “a lot of bleeding” and had to be taken to the hospital by an ambulance for surgery, a court heard.
Despite pleading guilty in October last year, he denied 39 charges, including 17 charges of bodily harm, 14 of child cruelty, and eight of administering a prescription-only medicine between 2014 and 2019.
any ban must apply to all cirumcision, not just to Muslims. But the govt won't ban it because of 'antisemitic' propaganda
— Jeffrey Mansfield (@JeffMMansfield) January 19, 2025
Siddiqui’s actions attracted a lot of criticism, including from the National Secular Society (NSS), which also criticized the idea of ritual circumcisions.
“The appalling crimes of Mohammad Siddiqui underscore the fact that ritual circumcision is painful, dangerous, medically unnecessary, and irreversible. The judge and parents of Siddiqui's victims are absolutely right that boys need to be protected from circumcision.” Dr Alejandro Sanchez, the human rights lead of the NSS.
"Circumcision is a surgery: surgeries are inherently dangerous and should only be performed on children when there is medical necessity. They should only be performed by medical professionals. Boys must be protected from ritual circumcision until they are old enough to decide for themselves whether they wish to undergo the procedure." Sanchez added.
