Acid throwing, also called an acid attack or vitriolage, is a form of violent assault. It is defined as the act of throwing acid onto the body of a person "with the intention of injuring or disfiguring out of jealousy or revenge". Perpetrators of these attacks throw acid at their victims, usually at their faces, burning them, and damaging skin tissue, often exposing and sometimes dissolving the bones. The long term consequences of these attacks include blindness and permanent scarring of the face and body.
These attacks are most common in Cambodia, Afghanistan, India, Bangladesh, Pakistan and other nearby countries. Globally, at least 1500 people in 20 countries are attacked in this way yearly, 80% of whom are female and somewhere between 40% and 70% under 18 years of age.
Read more about Acid Throwing: Attacks in South Asia, Legislation, Victims and Treatment
Famous quotes containing the word throwing:
“Most men would feel insulted if it were proposed to employ them in throwing stones over a wall, and then in throwing them back, merely that they might earn their wages. But many are no more worthily employed now.”
—Henry David Thoreau (1817–1862)