UN voices concern over imminent finger amputation of 8 men convicted of burglary in Iran

GENEVA (AA) – The UN Human Rights Office on Wednesday expressed deep concern over the imminent amputation of the fingers of eight men convicted of burglary in Iran, urging the country’s authorities to call off their planned action.

“We also call on Iran to urgently revise its criminal penalties to do away with any form of corporal punishment, including amputations, flogging, and stoning,” said Ravina Shamdasani, UN Human Rights Office spokesperson.

She said Iran should comply with its obligations under international human rights law and be consistent with recommendations of UN human rights mechanisms.

The eight individuals were sentenced to “have four fingers on their right hands completely cut off so that only the palms of their hands and their thumbs are left,” the spokesperson said.

Seven of the men had been identified as Hadi Rostami, Mehdi Sharafian, Mehdi Shahivand, Amir Shirmard, Morteza Jalili, Ebrahim Rafiei, and Yaghoub Fazeli Koushki, according to Shamdasani.

The seven men are currently held at the Greater Tehran Central Prison, while the whereabouts of one remain unknown after he was transferred from the prison on June 12, said the UN office.

All eight of them are likely to be transferred to Tehran’s Evin Prison, where reports indicate a finger-cutting guillotine was recently installed and reportedly used on May 31 to amputate one prisoner.

A first attempt to transfer the men took place on June 11 but was halted due to resistance from fellow prisoners, said Shamdasani.

According to Iranian civil society organizations, at least 237 people, mostly from poorer segments of society, were sentenced to amputations in Iran between Jan. 1, 2000, and Sept. 24, 2020, said the UN Human Rights Office.

Iran is a state party to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, which under Article 7 prohibits torture or other cruel, inhuman, or degrading punishment.