Christian families have abandoned their homes and fled Mosul after the Sunni rebel group, the Islamic State, threatened them with death if they did not convert to Islam or pay tax.

“Some families have had all their money and jewellery taken from them at an insurgent checkpoint as they fled the city,” Abu Rayan, a Christian who left Mosul with his family told AFP news agency on Saturday.

“Some of our homes have already been confiscated and I know families who have handed their keys to neighbours, asking them to look after their property with the hope they would return one day.” Rayan said.

The hardline group on Friday ordered Christians in Mosul that they could convert, pay a tax or flee the city after abandoning their possessions.

An earlier Islamic State statement said there would be “nothing but the sword” if Christians did not abide by those conditions by 9am GMT on Saturday.

The AFP said that hundreds of Christians had fled by the deadline.   »»» Al Jazeera English

The so-called “Islamic State” Muslims are heretics, renegades and blasphemers. They are guilty of the shari’ah crime of “hibarah”, which is the action of a group or an individual by which property is seized or destroyed and people are killed or kidnapped. The Qur’an describes it as “war against God and his Messenger” and as “spreading mischief (disorder) in the land (fasad fil ard)”. The punishment for hibarah is death.

Large numbers of Islamic scholars, including the very conservative and very influential Sheikh Qaradawi have declared that the “Islamic State” is NOT legal and that its leader is a false Caliph. The influential cleric said the declaration and nomination of Baghdadi by a jihadist group “known for its atrocities and radical views” fail to meet strict conditions dictated by Sharia. The title of caliph, he said, can “only be given by the entire Muslim nation” not by a single group.

In a legal Islamic state, Christians and Jews are free to live in peace but since they are not called upon for military duty and do not pay a religious tax called “zakat”, Christians pay a fair and reasonable tax (“jiziya”) to compensate for their zakat dispensation. Stealing homes and jewelry and threatening to murder Christians on short notice is NOT in accordance with Islamic law. If a “dhimmi” (protected Christian) does not pay the tax, it is collected by legal means upon court order, just like an unpaid tax in other countries.

Even Christians living in a Muslim state who are not “good” citizens must still be protected from abuse. The Prophet Muhammad (peace be on him) said: “Anyone who persecutes a protected non-Muslim (Christian or Jew) or takes anything belonging to him with evil intention will find that I shall be his advocate before Allah on the Day of Resurrection.” He also said, “Anyone who hurts a protected non-Muslim hurts me and anyone who hurts me hurts Allah.”

There is NO death penalty for refusing to convert to Islam. Indeed, Allah himself says in the Qur’an, “Let there be no compulsion in religion.”

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