Shady Srour is going to have to continue to worry about that cruelty. The death penalty for apostasy is part of Islamic law. It’s based on the Qur’an: “They wish you would disbelieve as they disbelieved so you would be alike. So do not take from among them allies until they emigrate for the cause of Allah. But if they turn away, then seize them and kill them wherever you find them and take not from among them any ally or helper.” (Qur’an 4:89)
A hadith depicts Muhammad saying: “Whoever changed his Islamic religion, then kill him” (Bukhari 9.84.57). The death penalty for apostasy is part of Islamic law according to all the schools of Islamic jurisprudence.
This is still the position of all the schools of Islamic jurisprudence, both Sunni and Shi’ite. Sheikh Yusuf al-Qaradawi, the most renowned and prominent Muslim cleric in the world, has stated: “The Muslim jurists are unanimous that apostates must be punished, yet they differ as to determining the kind of punishment to be inflicted upon them. The majority of them, including the four main schools of jurisprudence (Hanafi, Maliki, Shafi’i, and Hanbali) as well as the other four schools of jurisprudence (the four Shiite schools of Az-Zaidiyyah, Al-Ithna-‘ashriyyah, Al-Ja’fariyyah, and Az-Zaheriyyah) agree that apostates must be executed.”
Qaradawi also once famously said: “If they had gotten rid of the apostasy punishment, Islam wouldn’t exist today.”
“Egyptian YouTuber ignites internet firestorm after leaving Islam, denouncing ‘racism’ in it,” RT, February 18, 2019:
Social media fallout has followed Shady Srour’s Facebook post where the Egyptian YouTube star announced he was leaving Islam, citing how the “racism and cruelty” of its adherents had almost led him to suicide.
“I left Islam because of racism and cruelty in the hearts of people who are supposed to believe in God but in fact, they are a bunch of insincere hypocrites,” 24-year-old Srour wrote in a post on Friday, blaming his former religion for the excessive cyberbullying which almost cost him his life late last year.
Over the weekend, the status generated over 100,000 comments and was shared across social media, with most reactions divided between staunch support and harsh opposition.
The most popular comment on the status came from another victim of bullying, TV presenter Sherif Madkour, who wrote that Srour didn’t truly understand Islam, advising him to “ignore people with shallow minds, be yourself and trust your beliefs,” adding “God be with you.”
Srour eventually backpedaled from his comments in a YouTube video where he made it clear that the bullies he had called out were not true Muslims, and that Islam itself hadn’t played a role in the hatred he had experienced.
However, he also expressed surprise at how his post had generated a massive number of threats from hard-liners enraged by the comedian’s decision to publicly insult their religion….
With nearly 4.5 million followers and hundreds of millions of views, Srour is one of YouTube’s top earners in the region. His case has highlighted a growing trend of Egyptians turning against Islam, many suggesting the religion has played a role in the social chaos plaguing the country.