An African Female Circumcision Ceremony
Reuters photographer Siegfried Modola gained access to a circumcision ceremony in rural Kenya for young girls of the Pokot tribe, in Baringo County.
The traditional practice of circumcision is a rite of passage that marks the transition to womanhood and is a requirement for all girls of the tribe before they marry.
More than a quarter of girls and women in Kenya have undergone genital cutting, according to United Nations data. Despite a government ban on the life-threatening practice since 2011, the long-standing tradition remains a rite of passage for girls, particularly among poor families in rural areas.
 Pokot girls walk towards their homes prior to the beginning of their circumcision ceremony, about 80 kilometres from the town of Marigat in Baringo County, Kenya. SIEGFRIED MODOLA/REUTERS
 Pokot girls stand outside one of the girl's homes prior to the beginning of their circumcision ceremony, about 80 kilometres from the town of Marigat in Baringo County. SIEGFRIED MODOLA/REUTERS
 Pokot girls wait together in a home before their circumcision ceremony, about 80 kilometres from the town of Marigat in Baringo County. SIEGFRIED MODOLA/REUTERS
 A Pokot woman falls into a trance after drinking a local brew and dancing during a female circumcision ceremony, about 80 kilometres from the town of Marigat in Baringo County. SIEGFRIED MODOLA/REUTERS
 Members of the Pokot tribe gather round a fire before a female circumcision ceremony, about 80 kilometres from the town of Marigat in Baringo County. SIEGFRIED MODOLA/REUTERS
 Members of the Pokot tribe gather round a fire before a female circumcision ceremony, about 80 kilometres from the town of Marigat in Baringo County. SIEGFRIED MODOLA/REUTERS
 Pokot girls sit inside a hut during their circumcision ceremony, about 80 kilometres from the town of Marigat in Baringo County. SIEGFRIED MODOLA/REUTERS
 Pokot women and children rest by a fire during the early hours of the morning as they wait for the beginning of a circumcision ceremony, about 80 kilometres from the town of Marigat in Baringo County. SIEGFRIED MODOLA/REUTERS
 Pokot women place stones where girls will be seated to undergo their circumcision rite in Baringo County. SIEGFRIED MODOLA/REUTERS
 Pokot girls are encouraged to leave their hut and make their way to a place where they will take off their clothes and wash during their circumcision rite in Baringo County. SIEGFRIED MODOLA/REUTERS
 Pokot girls are encouraged to leave their hut and make their way to a place where they will take off their clothes and wash during their circumcision rite in Baringo County. SIEGFRIED MODOLA/REUTERS
 Pokot girls run from their hut and make their way to a place where they will take off their clothes and wash during their circumcision rite in Baringo County. SIEGFRIED MODOLA/REUTERS
 Pokot girls, draped in animal skins, sit on rocks during their circumcision ceremony. SIEGFRIED MODOLA/REUTERS
 A Pokot girl cries after being circumcised in a village about 80 kilometres from the town of Marigat in Baringo County. SIEGFRIED MODOLA/REUTERS
 A Pokot woman performs a circumcision on a girl in a village about 80 kilometres from the town of Marigat in Baringo County. SIEGFRIED MODOLA/REUTERS
 A Pokot woman holds a razor blade after performing a circumcision on four girls in a village about 80 kilometres from the town of Marigat in Baringo County. SIEGFRIED MODOLA/REUTERS
 A Pokot girl is smeared with white paint after being circumcised in a village about 80 kilometres from the town of Marigat in Baringo County. SIEGFRIED MODOLA/REUTERS
 A Pokot girl is smeared with a white paint after being circumcised in a village about 80 kilometres from the town of Marigat in Baringo County. SIEGFRIED MODOLA/REUTERS
 Pokot girls covered with animal skins squat on rocks after being stripped naked and washed during their circumcision rite in a village about 80 kilometres from the town of Marigat in Baringo County. SIEGFRIED MODOLA/REUTERS
 A Pokot girl bleeds onto a rock after being circumcised in a tribal ritual in a village about 80 kilometres from the town of Marigat in Baringo County. SIEGFRIED MODOLA/REUTERS
 A Pokot girl, covered in animal skins, walks to a place where she can rest after being circumcised in a tribal ritual in a village about 80 kilometres from the town of Marigat in Baringo County. SIEGFRIED MODOLA/REUTERS
 Pokot girls, covered in animal skins, walk to a place where they will rest after being circumcised in a tribal ritual in a village about 80 kilometres from the town of Marigat in Baringo County. SIEGFRIED MODOLA/REUTERS
 Pokot girls, covered in animal skins, walk to a place where they will rest after being circumcised in a tribal ritual in a village about 80 kilometres from the town of Marigat in Baringo County. SIEGFRIED MODOLA/REUTERS
 A Pokot girl, covered in animal skins, walks to a place where she will rest after being circumcised in a tribal ritual in a village about 80 kilometres from the town of Marigat in Baringo County. SIEGFRIED MODOLA/REUTERS
 A Pokot girl, covered in animal skins, walks to a place where she will rest after being circumcised in a tribal ritual in a village about 80 kilometres from the town of Marigat in Baringo County. SIEGFRIED MODOLA/REUTERS
 A Pokot girl, covered in animal skins, walks to a place where she will rest after being circumcised in a tribal ritual in a village about 80 kilometres from the town of Marigat in Baringo County. SIEGFRIED MODOLA/REUTERS
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