Capital Punishment in the United States: An Islamic Perspective

By: Azizah al-Hibri, Esq.

“Capital punishment is imposed in the United States for a limited number of reasons, such as treason and murder. Recently, all executions have been related to crimes of intentional murder, the most notable example being the approaching execution of Timothy McVeigh who caused the death of hundreds of Americans in Oklahoma City by blowing up a federal building. The basic arguments in support of capital punishment derive from two concepts: retribution and deterrence. In discussing the Islamic view of capital punishment, we shall therefore focus on the crime of intentional murder.”

arAR
Scroll to Top