Iran International:

A study on female genital mutilation (FGM) in Iran’s southern Hormozgan province finds the practice is sustained chiefly by family dynamics, gender stereotypes and local customs that often outweigh religious mandates.

Published by researchers at Islamic Azad University, the peer-reviewed paper appears in Social Problems of Iran (Autumn 2025) and uses grounded-theory interviews with 15 women (2022–23) to map causal drivers, intervening factors, strategies, and outcomes.

The authors report that cutting persists within kinship networks that link family honor to control over female sexuality, while misinformation and limited access to alternative medical or religious views reinforce continuity.

“The central category indicates the impact of religious and family institutions in the continuation and reproduction of the traditional pattern,” the paper said, adding that “local customs outweigh religious mandates, with religion serving more as a legitimizing discourse.”

They say women’s responses evolve from silence and avoidance in childhood to negotiation, alliance-building and seeking medical advice in adulthood, with education, urbanization and social-media advocacy widening pathways to change.

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