Photos: Unmarried couples flogged in public for going on date, a violation of Sharia law in Aceh, Indonesia

Photos which emerged on social media shows 'unmarried' couples being brutally flogged for violating Sharia law in Indonesia's Aceh province by going on date.

The photos from the incident which took place at Al Furqon Mosque in the city of Banda Aceh, Indonesia, show one woman crying as a hooded man metes out lashings with a rattan cane on a stage next to the mosque in Banda Aceh in front of a large, cheering crowd. Separate photos show a man standing as he received the same brutal punishment. More photos after the cut.

Aceh began implementing sharia law after being granted special autonomy in 2001, an effort by the central government in Jakarta to quell a long-running separatist insurgency.