An Egypt court has convicted a doctor for performing a female genital mutilation on a 13-year old girl.

The doctor is sentenced to more than two years in prison - of what is Egypt's first criminal conviction for the illegal practice. 

The victim, 13-year-old Suhair al-Bataa, died after undergoing the procedure in June 2013.   She was operated on at a clinic in Aga, northeast of the Capital, Cairo. 

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Doctor Raslan Fadl denied carrying out the procedure, saying he only treated her for warts.  Fadl added, her death had been caused by an allergic reaction to penicillin.

The girl lived in a small village in the Nile Delta near the city of Mansoura.  Her father, accused of ordering the procedure, did not press charges.  He even supported the doctor's claims. Last November, the Mansoura court acquitted both the doctor, and the girl's father.

Prosecutors appealed Fadl's acquittal with the help of Vivian Fouad, an official of the state-run National Population Council.  They cited collusion between the doctor and the family, who both agreed to an out of court settlement.

On Monday, the court overturned the initial verdict, sentencing Fadl to two years in prison for manslaughter, and 3 months for performing the FGM procedure.  His clinic was ordered locked down. The father meanwhile, was given a three-month suspended sentence. 

Suad Abu-Dayyeh, a spokeswoman for Equality Now, called the conviction "a monumental victory for women and girls in Egypt".

"The country has shown that it will implement its laws and we hope that this is the first step towards ending this extreme form of violence against women once and for all," she said.

Female genital mutilation (FGM), is a process of fully or partially removing the clitoris.  It was declared illegal in Egypt in 2008, but remains widespread.

According to UNICEF, More than 90 percent of Egyptian females between the ages of 15 and 49 have undergone the procedure.

The number of girls who have died from the procedure remains unknown, as deaths are reported as hemorrhages or allergic reactions.

Tagsfemale genitalia mutilation, Egypt, Suhair al-Bataa, Dr. Raslan Fadl