A 59-year-old man from Almere has been arrested for carrying out unlicenced circumcisions at a refugee centre in Katwijk.

The man, who was not identified, is said to have carried out the operations on ‘young boys’ in a careless manner and without a licence.

He carried out the procedure on six boys on July 24, the police statement said. In one case the complications were so extreme the child had to be hospitalised.

The police are now investigating how the man came to carry out the procedures in Almere and if he has done similar operations elsewhere.

Privacy

A spokeswoman for the refugee resettlement agency COA told the Telegraaf staff at the refugee centre cannot follow everything which happens within its walls.

‘1,000 people live there and it is not a prison, so people can come and go as they please,’ the spokeswoman said. ‘What happens in people’s rooms remains private. ‘ She told the Telegraaf that the centre’s own health staff had alerted the authorities to the illegal circumcisions.

The circumcision of boys is not illegal in the Netherlands. It is not covered by Dutch health insurance.