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Photos Claim to Show Islamic State Enforcing Sharia Law by Chopping Off Thief's Hands

The Islamic State’s media arm posted a series of photos Saturday in a jihadi forum that purportedly show militants preparing to cut off a man's hands.
Photo via the Islamic State

The Islamic State's media arm posted a series of photos Saturday in a jihadi forum that purportedly show militants preparing to cut off the hands of an accused thief.

The pictures don't actually show any cutting, but the Arabic captions describe the judicial process and appear to show two men inspecting the blades that will be used for the job.

The photos, which carry the Islamic State's logo, were reportedly taken in the city of Dar Al Fath (formerly Deir Hafer), in northwestern Syria. The images claim to show preparations being made for huddud — punishments and the implementation of Sharia law.

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The photos show a crowd gathering to watch the grim spectacle, and an Islamic State member reading out the sentence to the alleged thief, who is identified as Shamy Al Shoobi.

Islamic State video shows militants enforcing Sharia law in Kirkuk province. Read more here. 

Townspeople gathering in Dar Al Fath to watch the dismembering.

Crowds gathering during the implementation of the Sharia punishment.

Reading the sentence to the alleged thief, identified as Shamy Al Shoobi.

The punishment was purportedly carried out by 'medical specialists.'

Islamic State releases video allegedly showing woman being stoned to death by her father.

Last month, the Islamic State released video of militants enforcing Sharia law in Iraq's Kirkuk province by taking down ads for tobacco, confiscating and destroying forbidden products like cigarettes or "improper" women's clothing from local stores, and blowing up shrines.

The group has banned smoking and drinking alcohol, and a video released in April showed massive piles of cigarettes and booze being publicly torched in Raqqa, the capital of the Islamic State's self-proclaimed caliphate. Photos that circulated online later in April claimed to show people crucified by the Islamic State in a public square in Raqqa.

The United States Central Command announced Friday that coalition forces — including the US, Bahrain, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates — recently carried out 15 airstrikes on Islamic State targets in Syria and Iraq.

The US released footage that shows strikes against three buildings in Aleppo, Syria, on December 21.

Follow Keegan Hamilton on Twitter: @keegan_hamilton