From Theory to Practice
The death penalty for apostasy (riddah, ردة) is not merely a theoretical ruling in dusty Islamic law books—it has been actively enforced throughout the 1,400-year history of Islam. From the earliest days of the Islamic state to contemporary judicial executions, leaving Islam has consistently resulted in death for countless individuals.
"All Muslims agree that the punishment of the apostate is death." — Ibn Rushd (Averroes), 12th-century Islamic scholar
The Riddah Wars (632-633 CE)
The first major application of the apostasy death penalty came immediately after Muhammad's death in 632 CE. When numerous Arabian tribes renounced Islam and stopped paying the zakat (Islamic tax), the first caliph Abu Bakr launched the Riddah Wars (حروب الردة)—literally "Wars of Apostasy."
These were not defensive wars. Tribes that simply wanted to leave Islam were hunted down and killed. The historian Al-Tabari recorded that Abu Bakr declared: "By Allah, I will fight whoever differentiates between prayer and zakat." Tens of thousands were killed in these campaigns.
The prominent companion Umar ibn al-Khattab initially questioned whether they should fight these tribes, but Abu Bakr insisted: "By Allah, if they refuse to give me even a rope which they used to give to the Messenger of Allah, I will fight them for it." The message was clear: once you enter Islam, leaving means death.
Executions Under the Rightly-Guided Caliphs
During Abu Bakr's caliphate (632-634 CE): Beyond the mass killings of the Riddah Wars, individual apostates were routinely executed. The historian Ibn Kathir records several cases of apostates being brought before Abu Bakr and executed.
During Umar's caliphate (634-644 CE): Umar ibn al-Khattab continued the policy. In one famous case, a group of apostates were discovered in Iraq. Umar ordered them burned to death, though this method was later criticized by other companions who said beheading was the proper method.
During Ali's caliphate (656-661 CE): Ali ibn Abi Talib executed apostates by fire, a controversial method even among Muslims. When Ibn Abbas heard about it, he said: "If it had been me, I would not have burned them, for the Prophet said, 'Do not punish with the punishment of Allah (fire),' but I would have killed them according to the statement of the Prophet, 'Whoever changes his religion, kill him.'"
Notice that even this criticism accepts the death penalty—the only dispute was about the method of execution.
Medieval Islamic Empires
The Abbasid Caliphate (750-1258 CE): Apostasy laws were codified into formal legal systems. The great Islamic legal scholars of this era—Abu Hanifa, Malik ibn Anas, Al-Shafi'i, and Ahmad ibn Hanbal—all affirmed the death penalty for apostates in their legal writings, which formed the four major schools of Sunni jurisprudence still followed today.
The Ottoman Empire (1299-1922 CE): The longest-lasting Islamic empire maintained apostasy laws throughout its existence. The Ottoman legal code prescribed death for apostates, though enforcement varied by region and period. Christian converts to Islam who later returned to Christianity were particularly targeted.
Mughal India (1526-1857 CE): Under some Mughal emperors, particularly Aurangzeb, apostasy from Islam was punished severely. Hindu converts to Islam who reverted faced execution.
Modern Era: 20th-21st Centuries
The death penalty for apostasy did not disappear with modernization. Multiple countries continue to enforce it:
Saudi Arabia: No codified law, but Sharia courts regularly sentence apostates to death. In 1992, Sadiq Abdul Karim Malallah, a Shia Muslim who converted to Christianity, was arrested and sentenced to death (later commuted after international pressure). Blogger Raif Badawi was sentenced to 1,000 lashes and 10 years in prison partly for "apostasy" in 2014.
Iran: Article 167 of the Constitution mandates Islamic law for cases not covered by codified statutes. Pastor Youcef Nadarkhani, a Muslim convert to Christianity, was sentenced to death for apostasy in 2010 (eventually released in 2012 after international outcry). Numerous other cases have resulted in execution.
Sudan: Meriam Yahia Ibrahim Ishag, a Christian woman whose father was Muslim, was sentenced to death for apostasy in 2014 while pregnant. She was eventually released after massive international pressure.
Afghanistan: Abdul Rahman's 2006 case gained international attention when he faced execution for converting to Christianity 16 years earlier. He was only released by being declared mentally unfit and had to flee the country.
Malaysia: While not enforcing the death penalty, Malaysia imprisons apostates in "rehabilitation centers" to force them back to Islam. Lina Joy fought a six-year legal battle (2001-2007) simply to have "Islam" removed from her identity card after converting to Christianity. The court ruled she could not leave Islam.
Extrajudicial Killings
Beyond official state executions, apostates face vigilante violence throughout the Muslim world. Family members, neighbors, or religious zealots carry out "honor killings" of apostates, often with community approval or tacit official acceptance:
- In Egypt, converts from Islam to Christianity face regular violence, forced divorce, loss of custody of children, and sometimes murder
- In Pakistan, blasphemy laws (closely related to apostasy) have resulted in numerous mob lynchings
- In Bangladesh, secular bloggers and ex-Muslims have been hacked to death with machetes by Islamic extremists
- In Somalia, Al-Shabaab routinely executes accused apostates
The 2013 Pew Research survey found that majorities in Egypt (86%), Jordan (82%), Afghanistan (79%), Pakistan (76%), and Malaysia (62%) support the death penalty for apostasy.
The Four Schools of Islamic Jurisprudence
All four major Sunni legal schools mandate death for male apostates:
- Hanafi: Male apostates executed; female apostates imprisoned until repentance
- Maliki: Both male and female apostates executed
- Shafi'i: Both male and female apostates executed
- Hanbali: Both male and female apostates executed
The Shia Ja'fari school also prescribes death for male apostates. There is no mainstream Islamic legal school that rejects the death penalty for apostasy.
Biblical Contrast: Mercy for the Faithless
The biblical approach to those who abandon faith differs dramatically:
"If we are faithless, he remains faithful, for he cannot disown himself." — 2 Timothy 2:13
"The Lord is compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, abounding in love. He will not always accuse, nor will he harbor his anger forever." — Psalm 103:8-9
When the Apostle Paul wrote about Alexander the metalworker who "did me a great deal of harm," he didn't call for his execution but said: "The Lord will repay him for what he has done" (2 Timothy 4:14). Judgment belongs to God, not human religious authorities.
Early Christianity spread despite having no earthly power or coercion. Christians were the ones being martyred for their faith, not martyring others. The early church father Tertullian wrote: "It is a fundamental human right, a privilege of nature, that every man should worship according to his own convictions."
Questions to Consider
- Why has every major Islamic state throughout history enforced the death penalty for apostasy?
- If the death penalty for apostasy is a "misinterpretation," why did the rightly-guided caliphs—Muhammad's closest companions—enforce it?
- What does it say about Islam that it has required the threat of death to retain believers for 1,400 years?
- Can a religion that kills those who leave it claim to offer genuine freedom?
- Why did Christianity spread without such laws while Islam requires them?