A prisoner in Iran reportedly had his fingers cut off after being found guilty for 28 cases of theft.
Iran said that the amputation was carried out Wednesday in Sari, the capital of the Iranian province of Mazandaran in the north of the country. The man who had his digits cut off was not named by authorities, according to the BBC.
According to Iran’s penal code, which is based on a strict adherence to Sharia law, theft on “the first occasion” is punishable by the removal of four fingers on the accused person’s right hand. Despite that, punishments of that nature are rare, with the last similar instance occurring in January 2018 when the country cut off the hand of a 34-year-old accused of stealing sheep.
“Maiming and mutilation of individuals is not justice,” said Saleh Hijazi, Amnesty International’s director for the Middle East and North Africa.
“It is a harrowing assault against human dignity. Reforms to Iran’s penal code that would put an end to this outrageous practice are long overdue,” Hijazi added.
Iran has drawn criticism in the past for its hard-line punishments, which include gratuitous executions and floggings.
