Persecution by Muslims

The history of persecution by Muslims spans the 1400 year history of Islam starting with Muhammad’s rise to power in Medina and continuing with the conquest of lands that were formerly Christian, Zoroastrian, or Hindu. The Islamic dictum that commands toleration of religious minorities, specifically for “people of the book,” provided limits to persecution. Contemporary treatment of minority populations in Islamic nations provides examples of persecution by governments and non-governmental agents.
Persecution of Jews
Persecution of Jews begins at the founding of the religion when Muhammad expelled and killed the Jewish tribes of Medina. In the preceding centuries Jews were allowed second-class dhimmi status as “people of the book” with limited persecution aside from isolated exceptions. Severe persecution increased in the 19th and 20th century ending with the Jews fleeing Muslim lands in the 1950s.
Persecution of Christians
Christians living under Islamic rule were also covered by dhimmi law. Those living in non-Muslims lands were not protected people. For example, from the 16th to 19th century, Muslim pirates based in the Mediterranean captured and enslaved an estimated 800,000 to 1.25 million people from Christian Europe.
Persecution of Zoroastrians
In the first century after the Arab conquest of Persia, Zoroastrians were tolerated as “people of the book." Many choose to convert to Islam; some fled to India (see Parsi). Of those remaining Zoroastrian, persecutions led to secretive practices which lead to suspicion and more persecution.
Persecution of Hindus
Persecution of Buddhists
Buddhism as a separate and distinct religion had become a minor presence in India at the time of the Islamic conquests at the end of the tenth century; Invading Islamic forces plundered the surviving monasteries and eradicated Buddhism from the land of its birth. Contemporary persecution of Buddhists occurs in isolated locations within Southern Asia.
Persecution of Bahá'ís
The persecution of Bahá'ís is particularly harsh in Iran. It has existed since the religion’s founding but has increased significantly since the Islamic revolution.
Persecution of Atheists

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