Cross-amputation (Arabic: قطع من خلاف) is a form of punitive judicial limb amputation and one of the Hudud punishments prescribed under Islamic jurisprudence (Sharia law). It involves cutting off the right hand and left foot of the alleged transgressor.[1][2] The scriptural authority for the double amputation procedure is in the Quran (surah 5: 33 and 38) which stipulates:
"The punishment of those who protest against Allah and His Messenger, and strive with might for mischief through the land is execution or crucifixion, or cutting of hands and feet from opposite sides, or exile from the land: that is their disgrace in this world, and a heavy punishment is theirs in the Hereafter;" (33)
As for the thief, both male and female, cut off their hands. It is the reward of their own deeds, an exemplary punishment from Allah. Allah is Mighty, Wise. (38)
— Quran, translation by Abdullah Yusuf Ali., 5.33
The right hand is always amputated during administration of the punishment regardless of whether the victim is right- or left-handed. This is because the Muslim faith decrees that the right hand should be used for clean purposes such as writing or eating, while the left is reserved for unclean tasks, such as cleaning following defecation. By removing the right hand as part of the punishment, the victim is subsequently forced to use his or her 'unclean' left hand for tasks such as eating, and this added humiliation or indignity is regarded as part of the punishment.[citation needed]
Practice
The ancient punishment, typically used for highway robbery (hirabah, qat' al-tariq) and civil disturbance against Islam, is usually carried out in a single session in public, without anaesthetic and using a sword.[citation needed] In the case of a repeat thief, who may already have had a right hand previously removed for theft, a second offence can lead a court to impose a second judicial amputation of a foot, in effect turning the second amputation into cross-amputation. In countries mentioned below doctors attend the amputations to manage blood loss and pain by administering tourniquets, analgesic medication and bandaging.
The country with the most recent cases is Iran[4] with "at least 223 amputations have been carried out by Iranian authorities out of 384 known sentences since 1979, according to the US-based rights group the Abdorrahman Boroumand Center."[5] There seems to be a gradual transition to finger amputation using a specialized machine since 2013 [1] and particularly since 2019.
Brunei enacted in 2019 "...new penal code, which also includes the amputation of a hand and a foot for the crime of theft."[6] but has not carried out the punishment as of 2025.
Saudi Arabia saw a high of 27 amputations in 2000 [2] but amputation sentences were commuted in 2012[7][3] and no sentences are widely reported since then.
The punishment is also practiced in other countries such as Sudan;[8] Somalia;[9] Mauritania, the Maldives;[10] and Yemen.[11] The practice was common during the ISIS Caliphate and continues to be used in Taliban-controlled Afghanistan.
References
- ^ Tarabella, Marc. "Parliamentary question | VP/HR - Cross-amputation in Yemen | E-011050/2013 | European Parliament". www.europarl.europa.eu. Retrieved 2023-08-07.
- ^ Peters, Rudolph (2005). Crime and Punishment in Islamic Law: Theory and Practice from the Sixteenth to the Twenty-First Century. Cambridge University Press. p. 166. ISBN 978-0-521-79226-4.
- ^ "The Quran, sura 5, verse 33". www.perseus.tufts.edu.
- ^ Pannier, Bruce. "Criminals Lose Hands And Feet As Shari'a Law Imposed". RadioFreeEurope/RadioLiberty.
- ^ "Iran's planned amputations amount to torture, UN special rapporteur says". www.iranintl.com. 2025-04-11. Retrieved 2026-02-24.
- ^ Ellis-Petersen, Hannah; correspondent, Hannah Ellis-Petersen South-east Asia (2019-03-28). "Brunei introduces death by stoning as punishment for gay sex". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 2026-02-24.
{{cite news}}:|last2=has generic name (help) - ^ "Saudi Arabia: King urged to commute "cross amputation" sentences". Amnesty International. 2011-12-16. Retrieved 2023-08-07.
- ^ "Sudanese man sentenced to cross amputation for committing armed robbery – African Centre for Justice and Peace Studies".
- ^ Rice, Xan (20 October 2010). "Somali schoolboy tells of how Islamists cut off his leg and hand". The Guardian.
- ^ "Shariah Punishments in the Islamic Republics of Mauritania and Maldives, and Islamic State of Yemen". academic.oup.com.
- ^ Newsweek Staff (8 July 2010). "The World's Most Barbaric Punishments". Newsweek.
