BAMAKO, Mali (AP) -- Islamic police said they used a stage in a public square to amputate the right hand and left foot of five accused thieves in a city of Mali on Monday, in the latest application of Sharia law in the country's north.
That region of Mali, an area the size of Texas or France, was overrun by rebels allied with al-Qaida five months ago.

Despite a loud outcry from the international community and protests from locals, the Islamists have applied an extreme interpretation of Islam, and have stoned to death an adulterous couple, cut off the hand of another thief and publicly whipped people accused of other transgressions.

He claimed the accused thieves did not scream when their limbs were hacked off with a large knife. "They just said, `Allah Akbar! Allah Akbar! (`God is Great') until it was over. Then we took them to the hospital, where they are now receiving intensive care," said Toure.

Ibrahim Toure, a resident of Gao who is not related to the police commissioner, said he was passing by the square just after the amputations and saw children carrying buckets of water to wash away the blood.