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ozens of boys wearing sarongs and black velvet caps looked worried, some sobbing on their moms'€™ laps, and many fled the police station premises upon hearing their friends scream in pain.

It was a free mass circumcision held by the local police as part of a public relations event to mark the 67th National Police Day on Friday.

The boys, accompanied by their parents, had flocked to the police station complex from early morning. Unfortunately, the waiting room was just so close to the surgery rooms and the sight and sound of frightened pals screaming in pain scared the waiting kids.

 '€œThe noise of children screaming filled the air as soon the event began, sending a chill down the spines of their waiting friends,'€ kompas.com reported. Scared boys became agitated, trying to drag their parents home, while others simply took to their heels leaving parents and relatives behind.

Circumcision, the surgical removal of the foreskin from the penis, is obligatory among Muslims and is also widely practiced among other religious faiths in Indonesia for cultural or religious reasons.