Russia has been ordered to pay more than EUR 370,000 in compensation to a woman whose hands were cut off by her husband, writes BBC.

The European Court of Human Rights said Russia had failed to combat domestic violence, and ordered it to compensate four women who were brutally attacked. They include Margarita Gracheva, whose husband kidnapped her in 2017 and attacked her with an axe.

The court told Russia to make urgent changes to stop such attacks in future. It said domestic violence against women was happening on a “staggering scale” and Russia had breached two articles of the European Convention on Human Rights.

In December 2017, Ms Gracheva’s husband took her into a forest and cut her hands off with an axe. She had already told police about his aggressive behavior, but officers ignored her complaints.

Her now ex-husband Dmitry Grachev was convicted and sentenced to 14 years in prison.

The court said Ms Gracheva’s case showed how Russia’s laws meant authorities did not spot domestic abuse until it escalated to cause physical injuries.

It called for a legal definition of domestic violence and for all perpetrators to be criminalized.