She’s innocent until proven guilty!

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There’s really little to add to this story.

A group of haredi extremists suspected of being part of a pirate circumcision network that carried out illegal circumcisions on dozens of Russian teenagers in Jerusalem has fled the country and remains at large, police said Monday.

The haredi zealots allegedly performed the illicit circumcisions on the 16-17-year-old youths in a private city apartment in exchange for presents and without the consent of their parents.

Hear that, all you non-Jews? The Pirate Circumcisers are coming to get your sons! Muhahahahahahahahaha!

About the author

themiddle

47 Comments

  • “without basic sanitary conditions” and without parental consent? The charedim?

    NO WAY!!!!

    I wonder how many of this group of pirates are latent fagelahs.

  • This is awful, and I’d make a joke if it weren’t so graphically awful. I just thank CK for not putting up the picture of me as a pirate with a caption about my captaining the pirate circumcision gang.

  • Is anyone else tickled by the thought that this story broke a couple of months too early? Stealth circumcisions brings to mind the macabees.

  • DK wrote: “I wonder how many of this group of pirates are latent fagelahs”

    You mean like… butt pirates?

  • I thought 2 things: a check of some kind might be in order upon immigration, to you know, prove that you are Jewish, seems like that makes sense. And, why is this even an option if you are born in Israel? I guess you can file this under another reason why people make fun of Russians (besides the obvious)! Who else would be “…cajole[d]…into undertaking the operation in exchange for gifts.” I have no idea how this would go in Hebrew, but can you imagine in English: “come on dude, it won’t hurt, and look everyone is doing it” [pan across religious men showing circumcised penises]. It is like the religious version of Jackass!

  • I was in a tatoo shop in Jerusalem last night. A frat boy and his buddies walked in and he got his dick pierced insisting that his buddies watch. During the procedure he yelled out “Oh man! I won’t be able to get laid for 2 weeks!” I was tempted to yell back “Aw man, your sister sure will be disappointed!”

    But I didn’t. Why are there frat boys in Jerusalem???

  • You know CK, I’ve seen my fair share as well. The real question is, what were you doing in a tatoo shop?

  • Hope they are not taking the kind of “presents” Rabbi Mondrowitz was offering. Please watch the Nightline segment on the major case of Avrohom Mondrowitz, tonight, WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 11, at 11:30 p.m. It’s about justice — about religion — about coverups — about political influence — and about the children who are wounded because so many politicans, prosecutors and rabbis would rather look the other way.

  • …now I’m wondering if they are able to sell the forskins on some sort of black market. Tissue like that must be valuable in some cosmetic plastic surgery/skin graft procedures (or maybe I’m watching too much Nip/Tuck).

    AND I’d like to see Capt’n Pirate Esther start a group of zealot women who go around fulling castrating haradi men who don’t give GETs. Yo-ho-ho and a bottle of Rum me mateys!

  • Not sure what the problem is here… other than the halachic question: why circumcise kids who are likely non-Jews?

    Guess what, folks – this is a Jewish country. Uncircumcised immigrants often get clipped around this age in anticipation of army service – or just in response to peer pressure.

    So?

    Do you think the police are investigating the many, many more cases in with 16 year olds get pierced/tattooed with no parental consent?

    Let’s see:

    Officially cool and sanctioned “rebellion” like piercing/tattoing – perfectly OK, and the young “freedom fighters” of Jewlicious will be careful to strike the politically correct pose of hip acceptance.

    But circumcision no – because it’s so… uncool and traditional and square… not “transgressive” enough…

    Or maybe that’s an angle the busy-being-hip Jews of Jewlicious can’t wrap their minds around – that getting the clip could be an act of rebellion/personal expression for these guys.

  • Ben David, I’m sure that if you had an uncircumcized son, you would appreciate someone secretly manipulating him to get circumcized in a dark, dingy room without any medical facilities or a doctor nearby. Good for you! As for the rest of us, this act of teenage “rebellion” seems a tad more excessive than getting a tattoo and those who facilitate it seem to be less like tattoo artists and more like, uh, criminals.

  • wait, since when are doctors always present (and for that matter dingy rooms never used) at regular brit milot?

  • Ben-David,

    Well, at least you don’t pretend that the right-wing Zionists want anything more than to be another third world Middle Eastern country. Damn, I remember when you guys at least strived to be White Nationalists. Chalk it up to yoridos hadoros.

    Maybe you guys could run double-service back alleys? One for circing, and one for abortions, which will be illegal without a bais din heter, of course. And while there, you could serve felafal. No hand washing necesarry for any of the three procedures, of course. Obviously, supervision will be needed. On the food only.

    And if anyone like Jewlicious points out that there are problems here, well, you can just note the craziness of the Western World with its spikey hair and pierced everything.

    Hey, Ben-David — aren’t you kinda educated for this brand of third world fundamentalism? How far are you planning to ride this camel of a hashkafa?

  • Well Laya, in my experience there is usually a doctor present. If there isn’t and it’s a mohel who is doing the circumcision without medical supervision, in my experience it has always been someone who is well trained and experienced. Since I’ve been to numerous circumcisions, I actually speak from a broad range of experience. By the way, I have never witnessed metzitza be’peh.

    I have never heard of a circumcision done secretly unless there were Nazis or Inquisition members around, and, in my experience, even when a circumcision is done in a home, the environment is a clean one and the doctor or mohel take great care to sterilize what needs to be sterilized and to create a “clean” area for the rite to take place.

    Also, in my experience, the parents are always there along with family and friends to watch over the proceedings. This is, after all, an operation that removes a body part.

  • As for those foreskins, chutzpah, do as the Italians would do. Small pan, a tablespoon or two of olive oil, a little garlic (careful not to burn the garlic or you’ll have to start over!), medium heat . . .

  • well sheesh, I should hope it is always a “well trained and experienced” mohel, whether or not a doctor was present!

  • ok, tonight is not wed., it’s tues. but now I’m in the mood for italian sausage.

  • Did I add that circumcizing babies is different than circumcizing grown youths or adults who typically require anaesthetic as well as a hospital bed for the operation?

  • I’m wondering if people that are not bothered by this are the same people that are not bothered by the Female Genital Mutilation that goes on in the Arab world; or, if one procedure bothers them and not the other. All religious zealotry is looking very similiar to me lately. I don’t see how people can defend their own while condemning the same in others.

  • The clitoris was virtually unknown to the ancients. There is an urgent need for a theology of such matters.

  • Thank you themiddle for being sane. It’s nice to be on the same side of an argument as you for a change. It’s amazing how clear, correct, and level-headed another person can seem when you agree with him/her.

  • Tom, there is an urgent need to stop the violence against women of all races. Less mutilation & more cunnilingus for all! These girls submit to these unsanitary and painful operations “voluntarily” like the boys in the story above. Makes me wanna sit in the corner and lose my religion.

  • Less mutilation & more cunnilingus for all!

    Oh my god, I think I just gave myself a hernia I’m laughing so hard.

    Josh, thanks! But do remember that one person’s freedom fighter is another person’s maniacal prick.

  • Ben-David: It wasn’t uncommon in the Soviet Union for Jewish kids to not get circumcized. The real problem is that adult circumcision is a medical procedure frought with potential complications. Such a procedure ought to be done in a hospital by a Mohel who is also an MD. In the case of minors it needs to be done with parental approval.

    That having been said I don’t think tattoos for Jews are cool. The only tattoos we have ever promoted on Jewlicious are the halachically permissible impermanent henna kind. And yes, minors wishing to get tattooed ought to be able to do so only with parental permission. I don’t know where you got the idea that any of us believe differently. For the record, non-Jewish friends of mine who ask my advice about tattoos get the same response – I don’t think they’re cool and most people I know with tattoos regret them. It really takes a specific kind of person to carry it off without regrets… I think you’ve kinda pegged us wrong Ben-David. But whatever, chag sameach and gmar chatima tova!

    As to harry’s question – what was I doing in a tattoo shop – I went in with a Shas street team to offer the use of an etrog and lulav to all those who hadn’t shaken them yet – it was a door to door lulav campaign. As for the frat boys – they were already there.

  • Middle…glad I could give someone (beside myself) a laugh today! But really, FGM is no laughing matter, and neither is a group of rogue forskin hackers.

  • I wonder if there isn’t some lawful way for, ahem, “uncut” guys to have the procedure done safely and affordably. If social pressure to be cut is that intense, there should be a way to provide for that need in a safe manner.
    That said, I hope the weenies of those pirate “mohels” all fall off, or at least shrink to miniscule proportions. G-d is Just!

  • After reading this the whole thing just got a little sicker. May be an old piece and I’m not a huge fan of JWB but this is straight out of the Haaretz mouth (I’m guessing).

  • CK and others: the article does not mention who these people are, and just what constitutes “unsanitary conditions”.

    Adult circumcisions are generally performed on an outpatient basis, with only local anasthetic (and are paid for by government health care).

    And since the boom in Soviet immigration has lasted a decade-and-a-half, there are plenty of mohels qualified to do this.

    Stitches? Nurse-practitioners and others regularly do these instead of a doctor.

    So the assertions are vague and could be baseless.

    Middle: high school kids regularly get themselves tattoed and pierced without parental consent. This may not cause much joy to the parents – but my point is that circumcision is not much different.

    Tom Morrisey: do you REALLY think the clitoris was unknown to the ancients?

    Really?

  • Why do you think they videotape the procedure, Ben-David? Could you get me a bootleg copy? Cause I bet they are available. With the right connection, and for the right price. Oh, yes.