NYC, Orthodox Jews Reach Deal on Circumcision Suction Ritual | NBC New York

Simple, just shut the fuckers down,,,

The city said Tuesday it has reached a tentative agreement with members of the ultra-Orthodox Jewish community over a tradition known as oral suction circumcision.

Health officials have linked 17 cases of infant herpes since 2000 to the ancient ritual of sucking blood from the wounds on the infants' penises.

On Tuesday, Mayor Bill de Blasio's administration said mohels, as the circumcisers are called in Yiddish, should no longer be required to obtain signed consent forms before the rites.

Administration officials said they will ask the Board of Health to vote to rescind the requirement while working with a coalition of rabbinical leaders and medical experts to educate members of the ultra-Orthodox community about the possible dangers of the practice, known as metzitzah b'peh in Hebrew. A vote is expected in June.

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"Increasing trust and communication between the city and this community is critical to achieve the administration's ultimate goal of ensuring the health and safety of every child, and this new policy seeks to establish a relationship based on engagement and mutual respect," the administration said in a statement.

Details of the agreement haven't been finalized, but officials concede it's impossible to enforce the proposed measures in a community that practices its religious freedom in private.

Mohels have produced only one signed consent form in recent years, and rabbis have urged their faithful not to comply.

NYC, Orthodox Jews Reach Deal on Circumcision Suction Ritual | NBC New York