Abdulkarim Lahiji: Amputation Punishment is a Form of International Crime

The Islamic Republic continues to implement amputation punishments in Iran. Since 1984, physical punishments have been considered a form of torture under the treaty prohibiting torture. Abdulkarim Lahiji, honorary president of the International Federation for Human Rights, reported in the latest case that the amputation of a thief's hand was carried out by guillotine on Wednesday at the central prison in Mashhad. About three months ago, the same newspaper reported the execution of another hand amputation for a different thief. Following the Islamic Revolution in 1979, the Islamic Republic has issued and executed amputation sentences under the guise of Sharia law and within the framework of Islamic penal law for nearly forty years. In an interview with Radio Farda, Abdulkarim Lahiji describes amputation punishment as a form of international crime. This lawyer and human rights defender points out that amputation is only practiced by the Islamic Republic and Saudi Arabia, and was previously implemented in Sudan and by the Taliban in Afghanistan. Lahiji emphasizes that as long as the Islamic Republic's penal law is derived from Islamic jurisprudence and a cleric heads the judiciary instead of a legal expert, the situation will not change. This human rights activist notes that since 1984, physical punishments have been considered torture under the treaty prohibiting torture. The United Nations and international human rights organizations have consistently condemned the issuance and execution of amputation sentences in Iran and have called on Iranian officials to stop such punishments.