A doctor, who allegedly performed an illegal female genital mutilation (FGM) operation on a 13-year-old girl that resulted in her death, has been released in Egypt.
Prosecutors in Egyptian Delta city of Daqahliya yesterday ordered the release of Aslan Hammouda, charged with causing the death of the teenager while conducting the operation, pending investigation.
The teenager died on Thursday (June 6) after undergoing the operation, illegal since 2008.
Her death was reportedly caused by a severe drop in blood pressure.
The doctor had turned himself in, claiming the operation was at the request of the girl's family and denying accusations of negligence leading to her death.
"The operation was successful and the girl did not suffer any bleeding," he said.
The girl's mother, Hasanat Fawzy, said her daughter told the doctor she had a cold and asked if this would affect the operation in any way.
"He said it would not and told her to come the next day fasting," she said.
Daqahliya governor Salah al-Meadawy has also ordered the closure of the medical facility that carried out the girl's procedure.
FGM was banned in Egypt in 2008. Penalties for engaging in the practice are between three months and two years in prison and fines.
In February 2013, Egypt's High Constitutional Court rejected a lawsuit submitted by Islamist lawyers challenging the FGM ban.
