Boy dies after botched circumcision

A 16-year-old boy died on Saturday after being circumcised, bringing the initiation death toll to 10 in the past week, the Eastern Cape department of health said.

"The boy died after he was initiated at a school in the village of Gxulu, on the outskirts of Mthatha," said spokesperson Sizwe Kupela.

He said the boy died while on the way to hospital during the early hours of Saturday morning.

"When police went to the school to investigate, they found that it had been deserted... the community told police that all initiates at the school were sent home, and that the person who was responsible for the circumcisions had disappeared."

The nine others had died in various parts of the Eastern Cape since last Monday.

Police were searching for the man and investigating the increasing number of deaths, Kupela said. - Sapa