An anti-government, Islam fighter holds up his machine gun as he patrols an insurgent's stronghold in southern Mogadishu on Tuesday. (Omar Faruk/Reuters)

An Islamic court in Somalia that sentenced four men to have a hand and a leg cut off postponed the punishment Tuesday because the sweltering weather could cause them to bleed to death.

The court sentenced the men Monday in the capital, Mogadishu, after accusing them of stealing mobile phones and guns.

The court is run by al-Shabab, a powerful insurgent group that is trying to topple the UN-backed government and install a strict form of Islam.

The U.S. considers al-Shabab a terrorist group with links to al-Qaeda, which al-Shabab denies. The group, which controls much of Somalia, is boosted by hundreds of foreign fighters.

"The sentence will be carried out later," an al-Shabab official said. "It was postponed because of the hot weather and fears that the victims will bleed to death."

Amnesty International has appealed to al-Shabab not to carry out the "cruel, inhuman and degrading punishments."

No date was set for the punishments to be carried out.