Mass Circumcision Kills 39 Boys South Africa 2025

The 2025 Ulwaluko tribal initiation ceremony in South Africa, marking the transition from boyhood to manhood through circumcision, resulted in 39 deaths and many more mutilations, despite government efforts to reduce fatalities to zero. This marks a significant decrease from 93 deaths in 2024 and a total of 361 deaths over the past five years. The government attributes the continued fatalities primarily to criminal gangs operating illegal initiation schools, where untrained and unqualified individuals perform the circumcisions using unsanitary and outdated tools like old spears and razor blades. These illegal operations also violate laws prohibiting boys under 16 from undergoing the ritual and extort families by charging high fees. The main causes of death include gangrene, sepsis, and dehydration, with reports also indicating that boys who attempt to back out of the ritual face violence. Despite calls to ban the practice, many argue that Ulwaluko remains a crucial cultural tradition for the Xhosa people, conducted in secret huts and overseen by tribal elders.