Its authors say that parents and carers who believe that their children are possessed by evil spirits are allowing them to be abused and even murdered.

The report also suggests that children are smuggled into Britain as slaves or prostitutes for HIV-positive men, who believe that they will be “cleansed” by having sex with a child.

Two weeks ago three adults were convicted of beating and starving an eight-year-old girl in their care who they thought was a witch.

The ten-month investigation into the beliefs of African and Asian communities towards ritualistic abuse was commissioned last year by the Metropolitan Police.

It found that “people who are desperate will seek out witchcraft experts to cast spells for them . . . For a spell to be powerful it required a sacrifice involving a male child unblemished by circumcision.”

Members of a workshop attended by the authors of the report alleged that “boy children are being trafficked into the UK for this purpose”.

They reported that “specific details were not forthcoming as the belief was that they would be ‘dead meat’ if we tell you any more”.

The inquiry comes after the murders of Victoria Climbié and Adam, the African boy whose torso was found in the Thames and who is thought to have been a victim of ritual killing. The inquiry was carried out in two London boroughs — Hackney and Newham — by a social worker and a lawyer who have a background in dealing with child abuse. They said that the allegations could not be proved but expressed concern that children could be in life-threatening situations.

The unshakable belief in witchcraft has become a tenet of certain evangelical churches, which mix traditional beliefs about sorcery with fundamentalist Christian teachings.

Dozens of churches have mushroomed across the capital and then just as rapidly disappeared. Some are attended by just a handful of people at worshippers’ houses before they are closed and moved on.

Experts believe that hundreds of children attending these places of worship are at risk of being beaten or starved during exorcism ceremonies to rid them of evil spirits.

The report indicated that church pastors denounce certain children as witches, who then suffer violence at the hands of their parents.

It says that the preachers and their churches are a “lucrative business” operating throughout Britain, Europe and Africa.

“A number of pastors maintain that God speaks to them and lets them know when someone is possessed . . . They would not accept that they played a major role in inciting such violence,” it said.

The report was leaked to the BBC Radio 4 Today programme but Perdeep Gill, one of its authors, spoke to The Times about her findings.

She discovered widespread and cross-generational belief in possession — and that “possessed” children were abandoned or ostracised. If parents stood by their children, the whole family would be rejected by the community.

Some pastors used worshippers’ fear of being accused of witchcraft to control congregations and denounced children, knowing full well what treatment would then be meted out.

Ms Gill said: “Abuse was more likely to be seen if people were looking after a child that was not theirs, and witchcraft was often blamed for a perceived problem in the child — from bedwetting to rebellion.

“Pastors claim that problems are caused by possession, although most said the best solution was prayer and fasting. But they know the implications for the child. The way of dealing with it in Africa is through beating — to death in some cases. We told them they couldn’t distance themselves from it. “More people believed in witchcraft than didn’t and there are tons of small churches, with pastors moving from church to church.” Sita Kisanga, 36, Sebastian Pinto, 33, and the aunt of the eight-year-old girl accused of being a witch face lengthy jail terms when sentenced next month for abusing the child.

Richard Hoskins, a specialist in African studies who advises police, said that known cases in Britain were probably the tip of the iceberg but that there was a lack of communication between agencies. “There needs to be a government task force to investigate these churches and whether they should be registered,” he said.

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