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Iran Human Rights (IHRNGO) – Seven Greater Tehran Penitentiary prisoners are at imminent risk of having their four fingers amputated for theft charges. Iran Human Rights calls on the international community for urgent action to stop the implementation of these inhumane sentences.
Iran Human Rights Director, Mahmood Amiry-Moghaddam said: “Countries with diplomatic relations with the Islamic Republic of Iran must pressure them to immediately halt these sentences. Amputation is a cruel, inhumane and degrading punishment that has no place in today’s world.”
“The international community must not allow brutal hand and foot amputation punishments to be carried out by a UN Member State in the 21st Century through their silence,” he added.
According to information obtained by Iran Human Rights, seven men were scheduled to be transferred to Evin Prison from the Greater Tehran Penitentiary where their amputation sentences were to be carried out. The transfer was temporarily delayed due to resistance by some of the prisoners.
The identities of the seven men who have been sentenced to have their four fingers amputated for theft has been established as: Hadi Rostami, Mehdi Shahivand, Mehdi Sharafian, Amir Shirmard, Morteza Jalili, Yaghoub Fazeli-Koushki and Ebrahim Rafiei.
Human rights defender, Arash Sadeghi who first reported news of the scheduled amputations on Twitter, told Iran Human Rights: “It’s possible that their sentences will be carried out tomorrow.”
He also reported the amputation of another prisoner’s hand in Evin Prison last week. The Kermanshah native had also received the punishment for theft.
It should be noted that the abovementioned individuals are those sentenced to amputation in just one of Iran’s prisons. Due to the Iranian judiciary’s lack of transparency, the exact number of those awaiting amputation in Iranian prisons is unknown but it is estimated that tens of prisoners are currently at risk of the inhumane punishment.
Given the Islamic Republic’s previous practice of using cruel punishments as a means of instilling fear in society, and the nationwide protests that have taken place across Iran in recent week, Iran Human Rights expresses its concern about the possibility of inhumane punishments like amputation increasing.
