GETTY Female genital mutilation is still ritualised in some parts of Africa, such as Somalia and Egypt

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In the three months to September, 1,385 newly recorded cases of FGM were reported. Seventeen of those were girls under the age of 18. The figures suggest there could be more than 5,000 NEW cases of FGM in the UK every year. More than half of the new cases were recorded in London, with women of Somalian origin most likely to be victim of the cruel practice.

GETTY A woman shows tools which are heated and used to flatten girls breasts before puberty

A separate study found nearly 10,000 girls under the age of 14 living in England and Wales have undergone FGM.

A core missing part of the effort to end FGM in the UK is the lack of support of survivors medically and psychologically Mary Wandia, FGM programme manager, Equality Now

Figures compiled by City University London and Equality Now found that the number of women with FGM have increased substantially since 2001, especially due to migration from countries in conflict. Mary Wandia, FGM programme manager, Equality Now, said: "A core missing part of the effort to end FGM in the UK is the lack of support of survivors medically and psychologically. "The new figures will continue to increase. We are still only at the tip of the iceberg. "Cases of FGM are likely to exist in every single local authority in England and Wales, according to our research.

GETTY Female Genital Mutilation has been illegal in the UK since 1985