The Obama administration strongly condemned the stoning death of a woman allegedly by the Taliban in Pakistan.
“We condemn in the strongest possible terms the brutal stoning of a woman in Orakzai, Pakistan, allegedly by members of the Pakistani Taliban, which is depicted in a video circulating on the Internet,” State Department spokesman Philip Crowley said Tuesday evening.
He said the attack, which was carried out in the presence of a crowd of onlookers, “violates all norms of human decency and is a chilling example of the cowardly disregard violent extremists have for human life.”
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The incident, which took place in Orakzai agency in Pakistan’s northwest, came to light after a Dubai television station aired a video that purportedly shows the execution.
In the video, turbaned men are seen gathered around a woman with a black hood over her head. They then hurl large rocks at her head until she lies motionless.
The TV station said she was executed because she was seen with a man.
“There is no justification for such barbaric and cruel treatment of a fellow human being,” Mr. Crowley said.
The Taliban impose a harsh form of Islamic law or Shariah and punishments often include the amputation of limbs or death.
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