Somali armed group Al-Shabab should not carry out amputations
| Publisher | Amnesty International |
| Publication Date | 22 June 2009 |
| Cite as | Amnesty International, Somali armed group Al-Shabab should not carry out amputations, 22 June 2009, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/4a433c8cc.html [accessed 4 June 2023] |
| Disclaimer | This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States. |
Amnesty International has called on the Al-Shabab armed group not to carry out amputations on four men accused of robbery on Tuesday morning in Mogadishu.
The four young men were sentenced on Monday to cross-amputation (amputation of the right hand and the left foot) by an "ad-hoc" court set up by Al-Shabab in their military camp in northern Mogadishu. They were accused of stealing pistols and mobile phones from Mogadishu residents.
"We are appealing to Al-Shabab not to carry out these cruel, inhuman and degrading punishments," said Tawanda Hondora, Amnesty International's Africa Deputy Director. "These sentences were ordered by a sham Al-Shabab court with no due process or guarantees of fairness."
The four men allegedly admitted to the robbery, but have not been represented by a lawyer, nor are they allowed to appeal against their sentence. The amputations will reportedly take place in Al-Shabab's camp, Masla, in northern Mogadishu.
Al-Shabab factions and the Hisbul Islam armed group, headed by Sheikh Hassan Aweys, launched a military offensive against forces of the Transitional Federal Government, on 7 May 2009. The armed opposition is in control of several districts of Mogadishu. An Al-Shabab-controlled coalition in the port city of Kismayo, southern Somalia, has carried out at least two amputations since the beginning of 2009.
