Shahram Rafiizadeh

The Judiciary in the province of Sistan and Baluchistan in south-eastern Iran announced ‎that the hands and limbs of five individuals charged as ‘mohareb’ (i.e. “waging war on ‎God”) - a term usually referred to political opponents for opposing the Islamic regime - ‎were cut off. ‎

While such punishment is not new in the Islamic Republic and limbs have been cut ‎through court orders in other provinces such as Kermanshah, Khuzistan and Khorasan in ‎the past, what makes this event different is that the charges against these 5 men were ‎‎‘mohareb’ and ‘corrupt’. ‎

The Baluchistan judiciary, which is led by Ibrahim Nekoonam, who is also the head of ‎the judiciary council for the West of Iran, announced January 6, 2008 that in its efforts to ‎combat lawlessness, kidnapping and armed robberies, M.E. Jalili was sentenced for ‎‎‘mohareb’ and ‘corruption on earth’ by engaging in armed blockage and battling law ‎enforcement forces which led to injuries to one. Among the others whose limbs were cut ‎were E.B. Righi and A. Righi, who were charged with armed robbery and armed ‎kidnapping and the disruption of peace. E. R. Rudini and D. Pahlavan too were charged ‎with armed robbery and creating unrest in the region. All the victims had their right arms ‎and left feet amputated. The statement issued by the judiciary said that the sentences were ‎carried out through due process of law and in the presence of a medical team.‎

Four months earlier, Peymanirad, the deputy prosecutor for Mashahd had announced the ‎cutting of limbs of four robbers. In the month of February, two Afghan nationals had ‎four fingers of their right arms cut off on orders of Tehran’s court no 1143, led by judge ‎Jahandar.‎

During the same month the hand of a young man named Arash was amputated in ‎Kermanshah. This town has witnessed four similar events last year. But when this young ‎man’s hand was amputated in public, it led to a backlash and human rights organizations ‎in the country made public protests over the incident. ‎

In response to the protestors, Alahyar Malekshahi, the head of Kermanshah’s judiciary ‎said at a press conference, “If they wish their hands not to be cut off, then they have to ‎stop stealing.” Last year the right arms and left feet of two individuals were cut off on ‎charges of engaging in armed robbery in Ahvaz. The previous year the right hand of a ‎man was cut off on charges of robbery in the town of Kazeroon. ‎

But the latest execution of Islamic justice was different because of the charges the victims ‎carried. It is said that two of the victims belong to the Righi clan, who are either relatives ‎of or close to Abdolmalek Righi, the head of an armed Sunni group in the region who ‎have had a hand in a number of armed clashes and explosions in the province of Sistan ‎and Baluchistan in the past two years.‎

And unlike earlier cases, these 5 were punished on the basis of article 190 of the Islamic ‎Criminal Code. This law which is being implemented on a trial basis, contains even more ‎harsher punishment measures for mohareb and corrupt cases. For example article 195 of ‎the law provides for a punishment labeled as ‘crucifixion’ for someone who is ruled to be ‎a mohareb and corrupt.‎