“If we are not allowed to do brit milah [circumcision] anymore, Jewish life in Belgium is over, it’s finished, because it’s one of the conditions of being Jewish,” Ralph Pais, vice president of Belgium’s Jewish Information and Documentation Centre (JID) and Forum of Jewish Organizations (FJO) told The Jerusalem Post on Tuesday.
The conversation came amid rumors that Belgium may be looking to ban circumcision, rumors that reignited after a public argument broke out between US Ambassador to Belgium Bill White and Belgian Deputy Prime Minister Maxime Prévot, on Monday. White took to X/Twitter to demand that Belgium end an investigation into mohalim (professionals who perform circumcision) who may have been using unsafe practices while circumcising Jewish babies.
“You must make a legal provision to allow Jewish religious mohels to perform their duties here in Belgium. It’s done in all civilized countries as legal procedure,” White tweeted. “Belgium is a civilized country. Stop this unacceptable harassment of the Jewish community here in Antwerp and in Belgium. It’s 2026, you need to get into the 21st century and allow our brethren Jewish families in Belgium to legally execute their religious freedoms!”
Prévot retorted that any suggestion that Belgium is antisemitic was “false, offensive, and unacceptable” and claimed that “Belgian law permits ritual circumcision when performed by a qualified physician under strict health and safety standards.”
White’s post comes nearly a year after Belgian authorities raided multiple sites, including two in Antwerp’s Jewish Quarter, at the outset of an investigation into illegal circumcisions. The Antwerp raids stemmed from a complaint made by a member of the Jewish community named Moshe Friedman, a local rabbi, who filed a police complaint against six mohalim who practice metzitzah b’peh, a custom in which the circumciser cleans the circumcision wound by suctioning through a straw.
“After the raid in Antwerp, everyone was in shock. It was at 6 a.m., they came to three very well-known mohalim, who have done this for tens of years already. They took their material, and they questioned them, and they said, ‘We’re going to open an investigation,’” Pais said.
He stressed that the Belgian Jewish community was not against a framework such as there is in many other countries, where they combine religious practice and official medical safety.
“I think it’s our right to live freely as Jews here, to have our traditions. But there should be an opening in order to discuss those things,” he noted.
“So either they tell us, look, it’s finished, and we prefer that you leave [Belgium]. I prefer that they are clear. If they do not want us anymore, this is the way to do it. Or they have a normal, respectful conversation with their minority, because we are a minority, and try to accommodate our needs and try to also have a little bit of understanding for what the pillars of our religion are and how important that is for us,” Pais said.
He recognized that Belgian public opinion is somewhat against circumcision, and the practice is relatively uncommon in the country. Nevertheless, he said, it should be understood that religious freedom is an important part of a democracy.
Regarding the claim that the investigation was only into unsafe circumcision practitioners and not related to the practice as a whole, Pais said this was not the case and that the authorities were working toward a blanket ban.
Pais acknowledged that the original complaint had come from within the Jewish community, but he stressed that Friedman was not a representative figure.
“Mr. Friedman does not represent the Jewish community in Antwerp or Belgium. He is not affiliated with any recognized Jewish institution, synagogue, or communal body. He does not participate in communal life, and his positions are widely rejected.”
Pais emphasized that it was problematic when authorities relied on fringe individuals to characterize an entire religious minority.
“When policymakers engage with outliers rather than recognized community leadership, it creates distortion and unnecessary tension. The Belgian Jewish community is organized, responsible, and fully open to dialogue. We are not asking for privilege; we are asking for clarity and for the respect we deserve.”
Belgian law's requirements for circumcisions
Belgian law has stringent requirements for circumcisions: It requires all circumcisions to be performed by licensed medical professionals [even if they are rabbis]. The country has a track record of limiting religious exemptions in laws: In 2024, Europe’s top court upheld a ban in most of the country against kosher slaughter, which its critics contend is inhumane to animals.
Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar weighed in on the drama on Monday, writing that “there has been a sharp and consecutive rise in antisemitic attacks in Belgium for more than five years” and calling on Prévot to tackle reality head-on.
“Jews in Belgium are afraid to wear a kippah in the streets. Two Jewish cemeteries were desecrated. There was an attempt to set fire to a synagogue in Antwerp. Suddenly, after thousands of years of brit milah being performed, the mohel community is being targeted,” he said. “Jewish Belgian citizens living in Judea and Samaria are denied consular services, while Belgian Muslims are welcomed.”
Sa’ar added on X: “Dear Minister, I understand that the mirror Ambassador Bill White has held up to you is unpleasant, but one might want to take this opportunity to take a hard look in that mirror and acknowledge reality.”