Irreligion in Iraq

Irreligion is thought to be very rare in Iraq.[1] There aren't any exact numbers as atheists fear persecution especially from miltias and many fear telling their families or friends about their beliefs.[2] Some young Iraqis turned away from Islam due to religious fundamentalism and corruption of Islamic politicians and parties and the Iraqi insurgency (2003–11), the Iraqi insurgency (2011–2013) and the Iraqi Civil War (2014–2017).[3][4][5]

List of non–religious Iraqis

• Faisal Saeed Al Mutar Iraqi-born satirist, human-rights activist and writer who was admitted to the United States as a refugee in 2013.
• Bashar ibn Burd Poet of the late Umayyad and early Abbasid periods.
• Rifat Chadirji Iraqi architect, photographer, author and activist. He is admired as the greatest modern architect of Iraq, and taught at the Baghdad School of Architecture for many years.
• Sami Michael Iraqi-Israeli author, first in Israel to call for the creation of an independent Palestinian state to exist alongside Israel.
• Jamil Sidqi al-Zahawi prominent Iraqi poet and philosopher, known for his defence of women's rights.
• Jim Al-Khalili Iraqi-British theoretical physicist, author and broadcaster.[6]
• Selim Matar Writer, novelist and sociologist with Swiss and Iraqi nationalities, was born in Baghdad and resides currently in Geneva.
• Mohammed Al-Ameen Iraqi engineer, Human-rights activist, known for his defence of women's rights, sceptical, social activist, strategist

See also

• Christianity in Iraq
• Demographics of Iraq
• Freedom of religion in Iraq
• Islam in Iraq
• Persecution of atheists in Islamic countries
• Persecution of atheists in the Middle East
• Religion in Iraq

References

1. "Iraqi atheists demand recognition, guarantee of their rights". Al-Monitor. Retrieved 2014-03-24.
2. "Iraqis Shocked as Atheism Creeps in". IslamOnline. Retrieved 16 April 2017.
3. "Violence Leaves Young Iraqis Doubting Clerics". The New York Times. Retrieved 2012-11-05.
4. "A life without God in Iraq: This 22-year-old atheist has been called the "Baghdad converter"". albawaba. Retrieved 2014-02-06.
5. "Iraqi Secular Trend Responds to Religious Extremism". Al-Monitor. Retrieved 2014-03-25.
6. Jim Al-Khalili. Science Explorer: Jim Al-Khalili featured in The Life Scientific. BBC Radio 4. I find it more comfortable to say I'm an atheist, and for that I probably have someone like Dawkins to thank.