Saudi court 'wants to deliberately paralyse convicted man as punishment'

A COURT in Saudi Arabia is considering deliberately paralysing a man as punishment after he was convicted of severing the spinal cord of another person with a cleaver during a fight, Amnesty International has claimed.

Amnesty said a court in the north-west province of Tabuk had approached a number of hospitals about the possibility of cutting the man's spinal cord in a medical setting, after the victim requested such a punishment.

"It is reported one hospital said it could be done by a special medical centre. We have appealed to the Ministry of Justice," an Amnesty spokesman said.

Saudi Arabia follows an austere version of Sunni Islam that includes floggings for some offences, amputations for thieves, and public beheadings for crimes including murder, rape and drug smuggling. Human rights activists say that while Islamic law stipulates like-for-like punishments, victims or their surviving family members can often be persuaded to forgive an attacker.

Amnesty, which said the man lacked legal help during his trial, urged the government not to carry out the punishment.