A Tehran court sentenced two individuals to finger amputation on Wednesday as punishment for theft, sparking international outrage. The theft occurred in June 2022 when 13 individuals, including the two principal defendants, arranged a robbery at the National Bank of Iran. The group fled the country after the theft but was eventually apprehended by Turkish officials and returned to Iran.
The sentence, in accordance with Iran’s Islamic Penal Code, is part of a broader framework of corporal punishment that has been used to address crimes such as theft. While amputation is legally sanctioned in Iran, this practice contradicts various international legal standards, especially human rights obligations under treaties to which Iran is a signatory.
Iran is a signatory to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), which expressly prohibits inhumane and degrading treatment, including torture. Article 7 of the ICCPR forbids any form of cruel or degrading punishment. The amputation of fingers, as a form of retributive justice, is seen as inconsistent with the principle of human dignity upheld by the ICCPR.
Although Iran is not a party to the United Nations Convention Against Torture, the country is nonetheless bound by international norms and standards regarding the treatment of prisoners and criminals. Iranian courts continue to impose amputation penalties in defiance of these duties, indicating a significant discrepancy between Iranian domestic legislation and its international commitments.
Amnesty International has consistently opposed such punishments. The organization called for Iranian officials to be held accountable and denounced the amputation of fingers as “cruel, inhuman, and degrading” in a 2022 report. Amnesty underscores the long-term psychological and physical consequences of such punishment, urging the international community to demand the abolition of these practices in Iran.
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