RABAT FEBRUARY 8, 2017(CISA) – The High Religious Committee of Morocco has retracted a previous ruling that made apostasy from Islam punishable by death. Previously the committee known as the High Council of Ulema, which holds the responsibility of issuing Fatwas (Islamic rulings), had stated that defection from Islam merited death penalty but has since retracted its position, reported Italian Avvenire Newspaper February 8. In a document titled The Way of the Scholars, the committee defines apostasy not as a religious issue but a political one. The context of apostasy and its punishment, the committee suggests, was predominantly pragmatic and political. Moroccan Christians have previously spoken up for their faith and challenged the harsh anti-apostasy laws, despite the threat of persecution.