Acid Attack on a Young Woman by Her Husband in Tehran

On Monday, September 17th, a young woman in Tehran was attacked with acid by her husband and was transferred to the hospital. Acid is one of the few products whose market for buying and selling in the country has never experienced a downturn. In addition to the ease of access and availability of acid in Iranian markets, the absence of sufficient preventive laws has also contributed to the continuation of the crime known as “acid attack”.

According to Hrana news agency, citing Rokna, on the morning of Monday, September 17th, 1399 (Persian calendar), a young woman near Borujerdian Square in the Piroozi district of Tehran was attacked with acid.

After the young woman was transferred to the hospital, officers from Tehran’s Police Intelligence Department began special investigations and initially discovered that the 33-year-old woman, Fariba, had been attacked with acid by her husband.

Fariba, who could barely speak, told the officers from her hospital bed: “I have a law degree and work as a legal employee at a company. A few years ago I met Soheil and we got married. We both had good, well-paying jobs and lived a satisfied and peaceful life until my husband started using drugs for pleasure. I realized he was addicted when it was already too late, and our peace was gone. Soheil would quarrel and beat me over every little thing.”

The acid attack victim continued: “I tried several times to convince Soheil to quit his addiction and rebuild our life together, but every time he quit, he would return to drugs. Eventually, I decided to separate from him. I thought when Soheil realized what was happening, he would quit his addiction, but it was useless. Soheil threatened me.”

The young woman said: “I had already made up my mind and went to court and filed for divorce. That’s when Soheil’s threats began. He said if I didn’t withdraw my divorce petition, he would ruin my life. Then on the day of the incident, when I left the house to go to work, Soheil, who was hiding behind a car in a quiet alley, suddenly blocked my path and without saying a word, sprayed the liquid from a bottle on me.”

According to this report, Ehsan Zamani, the prosecutor of branch 6 of Tehran’s criminal prosecution office, ordered a team from Department 16 of Tehran’s Police Intelligence to apprehend the perpetrator of this horrific acid attack, and investigations are ongoing.

Acid is one of the few products whose market for buying and selling in the country has never experienced a downturn. In addition to the ease of access and availability of acid in Iranian markets, the absence of sufficient preventive laws has also contributed to the continuation of the crime known as “acid attack.”

Although a law regarding the punishment of acid attack crimes was passed in 1958, and in addition to that, the general provisions of the Islamic Penal Law can be used to criminalize this inhumane act, evidence and indications suggest the ineffectiveness of existing laws in preventing it.

In late May 2019, five articles of a seven-article bill to increase penalties for acid attacks and protect victims were approved by parliament members in an open session.

After amendments were made to the articles of this bill, on October 12th, 2019, members of the Islamic Consultative Assembly in an open session reviewed and amended the bill to increase penalties for acid attacks and protect victims, which had been returned from the Guardian Council.

In November 2019, this law was transmitted to the Ministry of Justice for implementation after approval by the Guardian Council.

Source: Hrana