ABSTRACT
Apostasy (riddah), desertion of Islam or converting from Islam to another religion, is today vigorously debated among Muslims. High-profile apostasy cases, and an increasing number of publications affirming the punishment of death for apostasy, have brought this once largely ignored pre-modern Islamic law to life. In the recent past, several high-profile cases of apostasy have emerged in Muslim societies and made headlines in the international media. It is these cases that have led Muslims, particularly intellectuals, to look at the question of apostasy and its place in a modern Muslim society.
