The Qur’an, which is of course the holy book of Islam and had its origins in Arabia in the seventh century AD, both explicitly endorses slavery and at the same time imposes conditions upon its practice. The first of these limitations is one which we have already encountered, which is that only outsiders may be enslaved. This prohibition had serious implications, for it meant that when Muslim societies were hunting for slaves, they were compelled to look far afield, which explains why the raids on Europe took place. Much of the Qur’an is based upon the Bible and so it may be said that Muslim
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