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Stoning, or lapidation, is a form of capital punishment whereby a group throws stones at a person until the person dies. No individual among the group can be identified as the one who kills the subject. This is in contrast to the case of a judicial executioner. Stoning is slower than other forms of execution, and hence is a form of execution by torture.

In history

Stoning is an ancient form of capital punishment. There are historical reports of stoning from Ancient Greece.^[1] Stoning is also mentioned in Ancient Greek mythology.^[2]

In Judaism

Although allowing for the death penalty in some hypothetical circumstances, scholars of Judaism are broadly opposed to the death penalty as practiced in the modern world. The Jewish opposition is not based on a literal reading of the Jewish Bible, but rather on Judaism's Oral Law. In 30 AD, forty years before the destruction of the Temple in Jerusalem, the Sanhedrin effectively abolished capital punishment^{[citation needed]}. As God alone was deemed to be the only arbiter in the use of capital punishment, not fallible people, the Sanhedrin made stoning a hypothetical upper limit on the severity of punishment.^[3]

In Jewish sources

Prior to early Christianity, particularly in the Mishnah, doubts were growing in Jewish society about the morality of capital punishment in general and stoning in particular. The laws make it clear that the death penalty was used only rarely. The Mishnah states:

A Sanhedrin that puts a man to death once in seven years is called destructive. Rabbi Eliezer ben Azariah says that this extends to a Sanhedrin that puts a man to death even once in seventy years. Rabbi Akiba and Rabbi Tarfon say: Had we been in the Sanhedrin none would ever have been put to death. Rabban Simeon ben Gamaliel says: they would have multiplied shedders of blood in Israel.^[4]

In the following centuries the leading Jewish sages imposed so many restrictions on the implementation of capital punishment as to make it de facto illegal. The restrictions were to prevent execution of the innocent, and included many conditions for a testimony to be admissible that were difficult to fulfill.

Philosopher Moses Maimonides wrote, "It is better and more satisfactory to acquit a thousand guilty persons than to put a single innocent one to death."^[5] He was concerned that the law guard its public perception, to preserve its majesty and retain the people's respect. He saw errors of commission as much more threatening to the integrity of law than errors of omission.^[6]

Mode of Judgment

In rabbinic law, capital punishment may only be inflicted by the verdict of a regularly constituted court of three-and-twenty qualified members. There must be the most trustworthy and convincing testimony of at least two qualified eye-witnesses to the crime, who must also depose that the culprit had been forewarned of the criminality and the consequences of his project.^[7] The culprit must be a person of legal age and of sound mind, and the crime must be proved to have been committed of the culprit's free will and without the aid of others.

On the day the verdict is pronounced, the convict is led forth to execution. The Torah law (Leviticus 19,18) prescribes, "Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself"; and the Rabbis maintain that this love must be extended beyond the limits of social intercourse in life, and applied even to the convicted criminal who, "though a sinner, is still thy brother" (Mak. 3,15; Sanh. 44a): "The spirit of love must be manifested by according him a decent death" (Sanh. 45a, 52a). Torah law provides (Deut. 24,16), "The parents shall not be put to death for the children, neither shall the children be put to death for the parents; every man shall be put to death for his own sins", and rabbinic jurisprudence follows this principle both to the letter and in spirit. A sentence is not attended by confiscation of the convict's goods; the person's possessions descend to their legal heirs.

The Talmud limits the use of the death penalty to Jewish criminals who:

(A) while about to do the crime were warned not to commit the crime while in the presence of two witnesses (and only individuals who meet a strict list of standards are considered acceptable witnesses); and
(B) having been warned, committed the crime in front of the same two witnesses.^[8]

In theory, the Talmudic method of how stoning is to be carried out differs from mob stoning. According to the Jewish Oral Law, after the Jewish criminal has been determined as guilty before the Great Sanhedrin, the two valid witnesses and the sentenced criminal go to the edge of a high place. From there the two witnesses are to push the criminal off. After the criminal has fallen, the two witnesses are to drop a large boulder onto the criminal – requiring both of the witnesses to lift the boulder together. If the criminal did not die from the fall or from the crushing of the large boulder, then any people in the surrounding area are to quickly cause him to die by stoning with whatever rocks they can find.

The 18 crimes related to stoning

Rabbinic law based on the authority of the torah, expressed or inferred, affixes death by stoning to eighteen crimes:^[7]

Bestiality committed by man (Lev. xx. 15; Sanh. vii. 4, 54b; Sifra, Ḳedoshim, x. 1; Mek., Mishpaṭim, 17).
Bestiality committed by woman (Lev. xx. 16: Sanh. vii. 4, 54b; Sifra, Ḳedoshim, x. 3; Mek., Mishpaṭim, 17).
Blasphemy (Lev. xxiv. 16; Sanh. vii. 4, 43a; Sifra, Emor, xix.).
Intercourse with a betrothed virgin (Deut. xxii. 23, 24; Sanh. vii. 4, 66b; Sifre, Deut. 242).
Intercourse with one's own daughter-in-law (Lev. xx. 12; Sanh. vii. 4, 53a; Sifra, Ḳedoshim, ix. 13).
Intercourse with one's own mother (Lev. xviii. 7, xx. 11; Sanh. vii. 4, 53a; Sifra, Ḳedoshim, ix. 12).
Intercourse with one's own stepmother (Lev. xviii. 8, xx. 11; Sanh. vii. 4, 53a; Sifra, Ḳedoshim, ix. 12).
Cursing a parent (Lev. xx. 9; Sanh. vii. 4, 66a; Mek., Mishpaṭim, 17; Sifra, Ḳedoshim, ix. 7).
Enticing individuals to idolatry: "Mesit" (Deut. xiii. 7–12 [A. V. 6–11]; Sanh. vii. 4, 67a; Sifre, Deut. 90).
Idolatry (Deut. xvii. 2–7; Sanh. vii. 4, 60b; Sifre, Deut. 149).
Instigating communities to idolatry: "Maddiaḥ" (Deut. xiii. 2–6 [A. V. 1–5]; Sanh. vii. 4, 67a; Sifre, Deut. 86).
Necromancy (Lev. xx. 27; Sanh. vii. 4, 65a; Sifra, Ḳedoshim, xi., end).
Offering one's own children to Molech (Lev. xx. 2; Sanh. vii. 4, 64a; Sifra, Ḳedoshim, viii., parashah 10, beginning).
Pederasty (Lev. xx. 13; Sanh. vii. 4, 54a; Sifra, Ḳedoshim, ix. 14).
Pythonism (Lev. xx. 27; Sanh. vii. 4, 65a; Sifra, Ḳedoshim, xi., end).
Rebelling against parents (Deut. xxi. 18–21; Sanh. vii. 4, 68b; Sifre, Deut. 220).
Shabbath-breaking (Num. xv. 32–36; Sanh. vii. 4; Sifre, Num. 114).
Witchcraft (Ex. xxii. 17 [A. V. 18]; Sanh. vii. 4, 67a; Mek., Mishpaṭim, 17).

In Islam

Islamic Sharia Law is based on the Koran, the hadith, and the biography of Mohammed. Shia and Sunni hadith collections differ because scholars from the two traditions differ as to the reliability of the narrators and transmitters and the Imamah. Shi'a sayings related to stoning can be found in Kitab al-Kafi,^[9] and Sunni sayings related to stoning can be found in the Sahih Bukhari and Sahih Muslim.^[10]

Based on this, in several Muslim countries, such as Afghanistan, Iran, Nigeria and Saudi Arabia, adultery is punishable by stoning.

The Koran forbids all sexual intercourse outside the marital bond as sinful, but makes no distinction between adultery and fornication and in both cases the punishment is flogging 100 times for those found guilty.^[11] Stoning (rajm) as a punishment for adultery is not mentioned in the Koran, so some modernist Muslim scholars like Quran alone Muslim Scholars take the view that stoning to death is not an Islamic law.^[12]

According to the Hanbali jurist Ibn Qudamah, "Muslim jurists are unanimous on the fact that stoning to death is a specified punishment for the married adulterer and adulteress. The punishment is recorded in number of traditions and the practice of Muhammad stands as an authentic source supporting it. This is the view held by all Companions, Successors and other Muslim scholars with the exception of Kharijites."^[13]

In hadith (sayings)

Sahih Muslim, Book 17, Chapter 6: Stoning to Death of Jews and Other Dhimmis In Cases of Adultery, Number 4216: Jabir b.'Abdullah reported that Allah's Apostle stoned (to death) a person from Banu Aslam, and a Jew and his wife.^[14]

Sahih Bukhari, Volume 2, Book 23: Funerals, Number 413: Narrated 'Abdullah bin 'Umar: The Jew brought to the Prophet a man and a woman from amongst them who have committed (adultery) illegal sexual intercourse. He ordered both of them to be stoned (to death), near the place of offering the funeral prayers beside the mosque." ^[15]

Sahih Bukhari, Volume 3, Book 50: Conditions, Number 885: Narrated Abu Huraira and Zaid bin Khalid Al-Juhani: A bedouin came to Allah's Apostle and said, "O Allah's apostle! I ask you by Allah to judge My case according to Allah's Laws." His opponent, who was more learned than he, said, "Yes, judge between us according to Allah's Laws, and allow me to speak." Allah's Apostle said, "Speak." He (i .e. the bedouin or the other man) said, "My son was working as a laborer for this (man) and he committed illegal sexual intercourse with his wife. The people told me that it was obligatory that my son should be stoned to death, so in lieu of that I ransomed my son by paying one hundred sheep and a slave girl. Then I asked the religious scholars about it, and they informed me that my son must be lashed one hundred lashes, and be exiled for one year, and the wife of this (man) must be stoned to death." Allah's Apostle said, "By Him in Whose Hands my soul is, I will judge between you according to Allah's Laws. The slave-girl and the sheep are to be returned to you, your son is to receive a hundred lashes and be exiled for one year. You, Unais, go to the wife of this (man) and if she confesses her guilt, stone her to death." Unais went to that woman next morning and she confessed. Allah's Apostle ordered that she be stoned to death.^[16]

Usage today

As of September 2010, stoning is a punishment that is included in the laws in seven countries including Iran, Saudi Arabia, Sudan, Pakistan, Yemen, the United Arab Emirates, and some states in Nigeria.^[17] While stoning may not be codified in the laws of Afghanistan and Somalia, both countries have seen several incidents of stoning to death. ^[18] ^[19]

Afghanistan

Before the Taliban government, most areas of Afghanistan, aside from the capital, Kabul, were controlled locally by warlords or tribal leaders and the Afghan legal system depended highly on an individual community's local culture and the political and/or religious ideology of its leaders. Stoning also occurred in lawless areas, where vigilantes committed the act for political purposes. Once the Taliban took over, stoning became the official punishment for many crimes. The U.S.-led occupation ended stoning as an official court ruling, but it still occurs unofficially.^[20]^[21] A Taliban-ordered public stoning of a couple accused of adultery took place in Kunduz on August 15, 2010.^[22]

Indonesia

In 2009 a law was introduced in Aceh that called for the stoning of married adulterers^[23] but no cases of the sentence having been carried out have yet been reported.

Iraq

In 2007 Yezidi girl Du'a Khalil Aswad was stoned by Yezidi men in northern Iraq.^[24]

Iran

In Iran, stoning as a punishment did not exist until 1983, when the contemporary Islamic penal code was ratified. Many Muslim jurists in Iran are of the opinion that although stoning can be considered Islamic, the criteria under which it can be imposed as a sentence are stringent; because of the large burden of proof needed to reach a guilty sentence of adultery, its penalty is hardly ever applicable.

Following vociferous domestic and international controversy and outcry over stoning in the early years of the Islamic republic, the government placed a moratorium on stoning in 2002.^[25] In 2008, Iran's judiciary decided to submit a new draft penal code to parliament for approval.^[26] In January 2005, the Iranian judiciary spokesman Jamal Karimirad was quoted as saying "Stoning has been dropped from the penal code for a long time, and in the Islamic republic, we do not see such punishments being carried out", further adding that if stoning sentences were passed by lower courts, they were over-ruled by higher courts and "no such verdicts have been carried out."^[27] In 2008, Iran's judiciary scrapped stoning in draft legislation submitted to parliament for approval.^[26] As of June 2009, Iran's parliament has been reviewing and revising the Islamic penal code to omit stoning.^[28]

Nigeria

Since the Sharia legal system was introduced in the predominantly Muslim north of Nigeria in 2000, more than a dozen Nigerian Muslims have been sentenced to death by stoning for sexual offences ranging from adultery to homosexuality. However, none of these sentences has actually been carried out. They have either been thrown out on appeal or commuted to prison terms as a result of pressure from human rights groups.

Saudi Arabia, Sudan

Stonings, with and without legal proceedings, have been reported in Sudan and Saudi Arabia.^[29]

Somalia

In October, 2008, a girl, Aisho Ibrahim Dhuhulow, was buried up to her neck at a Somalian football stadium, then stoned to death in front of more than 1,000 people. The stoning occurred after she had allegedly pleaded guilty to adultery in a sharia court in Kismayo, a city controlled by Islamist insurgents. According to the insurgents she had stated that she wanted sharia law to apply.^[30] However, other sources state that the victim had been crying, that she begged for mercy and had to be forced into the hole before being buried up to her neck in the ground.^[31] Amnesty International later learned that the girl was in fact 13 years old and had been arrested by al-Shabab militia after she had reported being gang-raped by three men.^[32]

In December 2009, another instance of stoning was publicised after Mohamed Abukar Ibrahim was accused of adultery by the Hizbul Islam militant group.^[33]

Views

Support for stoning

A survey carried out by the Indonesia Survey Institute found that 43% of Indonesians support Rajam or stoning for adulterers.^[34]

Groups against stoning

Stoning has been condemned by several human rights organizations. Some groups, such as Amnesty International^[35] and Human Rights Watch, oppose all capital punishment, including stoning. Other groups, such as RAWA (Revolutionary Association of the Women of Afghanistan), oppose stoning per se as an especially cruel practice.

Specific sentences of stoning, such as the Amina Lawal case, have often generated international protest. Groups like Human Rights Watch,^[36] while in sympathy with these protests, have raised a concern that the Western focus on stoning as an especially "exotic" or "barbaric" act distracts from what they view as the larger problems of capital punishment. They argue that the "more fundamental human rights issue in Nigeria is the dysfunctional justice system."

In Iran, the Stop Stoning Forever Campaign was formed by various women's rights activists after a man and a woman were stoned to death in Mashhad in May 2006. The campaign's main goal is to legally abolish stoning as a form of punishment for adultery in Iran.^[25]

People who were stoned to death

Lucius Appuleius Saturninus, d. 100 BC, grandfather of later triumvir Marcus Aemilius Lepidus
Saint Stephen, about AD 34–35
Pancras of Taormina, about AD 40
James the Just, in AD 62, after being condemned by the Sanhedrin
Saint Timothy, after AD 67
Constantine-Silvanus, founder of the Paulicians, stoned in 684 in Armenia
Saint Eskil, Anglo-Saxon monk stoned to death by Swedish Vikings, about 1080
Moctezuma II, 1520, last Aztec Emperor (although the Aztecs claim he was executed by the Spanish)
Soraya Manutchehri, 1986, stoned to death in Iran after being falsely accused of adultery
Du’a Khalil Aswad, 2007, a 17-year-old stoned to death in Iraq
Solange Medina, 2009, a 20 year old stoned to death in Juárez, Mexico^[37]
Gustavo Santoro, 2010, a small town mayor in Mexico believed to have been murdered by stoning^[38]
Murray Seidman, 2011, a 70 year old senior in Philadelphia, stoned to death by 28 year old John Thomas after allegedly making sexual advances towards the younger man. Thomas' defence is that he did it because The Bible says to stone homosexuals.^[39]

People who were almost stoned

Amina Lawal, sentenced to death by stoning in Nigeria in 2002, but freed on appeal
Sakineh Mohammadi Ashtiani sentenced to death by stoning in Iran in 2007, but sentence is under review

People stoned in religious texts

In the Tanakh and Old Testament:

The son of an Israelite woman and an Egyptian man, for cursing God (Leviticus 24:10–23)
A man who gathered wood on Shabbat (Numbers 15:32–36)
Yeshu, a person mentioned in the Talmud as a sorcerer and an inciter to idolatry
Achan (Joshua 7)
Adoniram, King Rehoboam's tax man (1 Kings 12:18)
Naboth, (1 Kings 21)
Zechariah ben Jehoiada, who denounced the people's disobedience to the commandments (2 Chronicles 24:20–21, perhaps also Matthew 23:35)

In the New Testament:

Saint Stephen, sentenced for blasphemy c. AD 31 (Acts 6:8–14, 7:58–60).

Others:

Palamedes, stoned to death as a traitor.

People who were almost stoned in religious texts