But Warraq's best work is done in showing exactly how dangerous Islam really is. Beginning with Muhammed, violence, intolerance and human rights abuses have been part and parcel of Islam to this very day. This cannot be ascribed to isolated Fundamentalists, Warraq explains, but is built into the very core of the religion. Islam is Fundamentalism - it cannot be otherwise. This raises a thorny ethical dilemma.
Freedom of religion is a part of every civilised country.
Having learned their lesson from the horrors of the past, few First World governments are willing to legislate the practice of religion in any way. Islam does not recognise the right of any other religion to exist. Murder of apostates is not only condoned, but encouraged by the Prophet. Women are treated shamefully, and accorded a status far inferior to that of Muslim men. My only criticism of Warraq's book is that at times he goes into far too much historical detail, which detracts a little from it's overall message.