Supreme court sentences non-Italian father for child abuse Judge refuses defense's ethnic-religious argument

(ANSA) - Rome, March 30 - The Italian Supreme Court on Friday upheld a sentence for abuse and aggravated assault by a Moroccan father against his 12-year-old daughter.Defense lawyers maintained that the father, who allegedly beat his daughter with a broom handle for "corrective" purposes after she could not properly recite the Koran, did so because of "cultural" reasons and should be given a lighter sentence accordingly.The judge dismissed the defense's argument, calling the treatment "violent and unjustifiable" whether from Italian nationals or foreigners.