[JURIST] An Egyptian appeals court Monday convicted a doctor of manslaughter in a female genital mutilation (FGM) [WHO backgrounder] that resulted in the death of a 13-year-old girl in 2013. The doctor, Raslan Fadl, who was originally cleared of charges [JURIST report] at the trial level, was fined and sentenced [BBC report] to two years of hard labor for manslaughter with an additional three months added for FGM. The victim, Suhair al-Bataa, was brought to Fadl by her father in order to undergo the illegal procedure. The father of the victim also faced trial Monday and was given a suspended sentence. He had also been acquitted by the trial court. The case against Fadl was the first in the country to be brought to trial. The practice has been banned in Egypt since 2008, but, according to the BBC, the country has one of the highest prevalence rates in the world.

FGM is a widespread practice, despite the international community’s consistent call to end the practice. The UN has consistently campaigned [JURIST report] for an end to FGM, labeling the practice, among other things, gender-based discrimination, torture, an affront to human dignity and an irreparable, irreversible abuse of the human rights of women and girls. In July UK Prime Minister David Cameron [official website] announced plans to enact new laws [JURIST report] that will protect girls from the practice. In July 2013, noting the continued pervasiveness of FGM, UNICEF reported a world-wide decline in the practice [JURIST report] due to multiple campaigns intended to educate parents on the emotional and physical health risks associated with the procedure and its aftermath.