( CNN ) -- A human rights group issued a new report detailing the widespread practice of female circumcisions in Iraqi Kurdistan , calling on Kurdish authorities to outlaw it . The 73-page report , released Wednesday by the group Human Rights Watch , cites previous studies estimating the circumcision rate for young women to range from 41 percent in a smaller sample of women up to 80 percent in larger studies . The Kurdish government does not keep statistics on female circumcisions or post-operative medial consequences . Human Rights Watch refers to the circumcisions as `` female genital mutilation . '' The procedure involves partial or total removal of the clitoris , and is also known as clitoridectomy . The report describes the pain , fear , and physical and emotional distress that girls experience as they undergo the procedure . Although Islam does not mandate female circumcisions , some girls say it comes from the belief that anything they touch is unclean `` until they go through this painful procedure , '' according to the group . Critics say the intent is to oppress women , and to curtail female sexual desire , even if the surgery poses a health risk . The report , entitled `` 'They Took Me and Told Me Nothing : ' Female Genital Mutilation in Iraqi Kurdistan , '' describes the pain and fear the girls and young women endure as they undergo the procedure , and the physical and emotional distress suffered afterward . It calls on the semi-autonomous Kurdistan Regional Government to ban the practice . `` FGM violates women 's and children 's rights , including their rights to life , health , and bodily integrity , '' said Nadya Khalife , Middle East women 's rights researcher at Human Rights Watch . `` It 's time for the regional government to step up to the plate and take concrete actions to eliminate this harmful practice because it simply wo n't go away on its own . '' The authors interviewed Baxcha A. , 22-year-old Kurdish married woman , in 2009 . `` I was five , '' said Baxcha . `` My mother took us , me and my sister , to a midwife , and I ran away . They [ later ] held me by force and removed a piece of flesh from my body . They opened up my legs , and it was very painful . They put water and then ash on the wound . '' The report says the previous regional government in Kurdistan decreed that anyone performing female circumcisions should be arrested and punished , but Human Rights Watch says it found no evidence the law is being enforced . The group acknowledged it wo n't be easy to change long-existing mindsets and traditions . `` Eradicating it in Iraqi Kurdistan will require strong and dedicated leadership on the part of the regional government , including a clear message that FGM will no longer be tolerated , '' Khalife said .
She calls on government in Iraqi Kurdistan to ban female circumcision . Critics say practice oppresses women . Victim describes forcible procedure at age 15 . HRW wants ` ` clear ' '' against practice .