of Jewish persecution have repeatedly included bans on the practice as a means of forceful assimilation, conversion, and ethnocide. Circumcision has also played a major role in Christian history and theology. Among the vast majority of Christian denominations, it is not considered a practice that is obligatory or recommended for religious reasons. Variant medical, cultural, ethical, and social views on circumcision have led to a widely diverging incidence and prevalence within polities. Circumcision is widespread in Australia, Canada, Africa, parts of Asia, the United States, South Korea, and New Zealand. It is relatively rare for non-religious reasons in parts of Southern Africa, Latin America, Europe, and parts of Asia. The origin of circumcision is not known with certainty; the oldest documentation comes from ancient Egypt. Uses Elective Around half of all circumcisions worldwide are performed for reasons of prophylactic healthcare. Prophylactic usage in high-risk populations There is a consensus among the world's major medical organizations and in the academic literature that circumcision is an efficacious intervention for HIV prevention in high risk populations if carried out by medical professionals under safe conditions. In 2007, the WHO and the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) stated that they recommended adolescent and adult circumcision as part of a comprehensive program for prevention of HIV transmission in areas with high endemic rates of HIV, as long as the program includes "informed consent, confidentiality, and absence of coercion" ― known as voluntary medical male circumcision, or VMMC. In 2010, this was expanded to routine neonatal circumcision, as long as those undergoing the procedure received assent from their parents. In 2020, the World Health Organization again concluded that male circumcision is an efficacious intervention for HIV prevention and that the promotion of male circumcision is an essential strategy, in addition to other preventive measures, for the prevention of heterosexually acquired HIV infection in men. Eastern and southern Africa had a particularly low prevalence of circumcised males. This region has a disproportionately high HIV infection rate, with a significant number of those infections stemming from heterosexual transmission. As a result, the promotion of prophylactic circumcision has been a priority intervention in that region since the WHO's 2007 recommendations. The International Antiviral Society–USA also suggests circumcision be discussed with men who have insertive anal sex with men, especially in regions where HIV is common. There is evidence that circumcision is associated with a reduced risk of