Shows the effects Shari'a law has on human rights, especially the status of women and religious freedom, of Muslims as well as religious minorities and democracy itself. It concludes with policy recommendations for the United States regarding specific countries confronting extreme Shari'a.

A major feature of the rise of Islamism in the Middle East, Asia, Africa and parts of the West is the current rapid growth of a starkly repressive version of shari'a, Islamic law. In this book, noted human rights activists and scholars trace the growth of such law in Saudi Arabia, Iran, Pakistan, Sudan, Nigeria, Malaysia, and Indonesia; document its threat to the status of women, religious freedom, and democracy itself; and suggest how the rest of the world should respond. Published in cooperation with Freedom House's Center for Religious Freedom.