The Jama'atu Nasril Islam (JNI), an influential Nigerian...

The Jama'atu Nasril Islam (JNI), an influential Nigerian Islamic body, warned Amnesty International to stop interfering in Islamic religion in the name of human rights campaigns. The warning followed the release of a report by Amnesty the previous day condemning the use of the death penalty in 12 northern Nigeria's states where the Sharia legal system was in operation. "We are warning Amnesty to desist from disparaging Islam under the guise of human rights," JNI spokesman Zubairu Jibrin said. "The issue of stoning for adultery is an Islamic injunction which applies only to Muslims and every Muslim who commits adultery is aware of the consequence of this offence if he is prosecuted," he added. "The issue of stoning for adultery is not confined to Islam. Both Judaism and Christianity prescribe same punishment for adultery, even in severer form," he added. Amnesty had said the death penalty violated women's human rights by curbing their right to a fair trial and by exposing them to homicide charges for abortion-related offences.