Excerpt:
Britain's first "faith summit" on female genital mutilation was taking place today in a new attempt to secure religious leaders' help in the fight against the barbaric practice.
Muslim, Christian and other religious leaders were all called to the Whitehall meeting. Officials said the main aim was to encourage them to exert their influence to change the views of followers who believe that mutilation is necessary — and to stop those who carry out cutting.
Government ministers were also hoping that the meeting would help to identify any obstacles hindering efforts to protect girls and allow them to pass on information about the measures that charities, police and others are taking to prevent the crime.