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I've heard that in several countries, including Malay and Iran, being an atheist can get you a death sentence. All of these countries are Islamic countries.
Now, Islam itself is already pretty close to atheism, rejecting all gods but one (Allah). So it's legal to believe in Visnu, or Thor, or Zeus, but illegal to share similar beliefs with Muslims that none of those gods exist.
Why, then, do these laws exist? Do these countries hate atheists, and if so, why?
They are against atheism and also other religions too because according to interpretations of Islam this is casting doubt on Islam.
According to popular interpretations of Islam, Muslims are not free to change religion or become an atheist: denying Islam and thus becoming an apostate is traditionally punished by death for men and by life imprisonment for women.
The reason they might be slightly more offended at Atheists is that they are "considered a Muslim whose beliefs cast doubt on the Divine, and/or Qur'an". Other religions are still not fully accepted and in some countries, Atheism and other religions are punished equally. Believing in a different god seems less offensive to them than being considered a Muslim and casting doubt on their religion, which is why they are sometimes considered worse than believers of other religions, although mostly they dislike anyone equally who doubts their religion either by believing in a different god or denying their god.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Discrimination_against_atheists
I've heard that in several countries, including Malay and Iran, being an atheist can get you a death sentence.
It's worth mentioning that (as far as I know) these laws are rarely applied, if at all.
All of these countries are Islamic countries.
This might be true nowadays, but from a historical perspective this was also true for christian countries in Europe, at least until the Middle Age.
More generally, laws to enforce a state religion have been in use in many countries. Some of them had laws to punish blasphemy until very recently, e.g. Ireland.
Now, Islam itself is already pretty close to atheism, rejecting all gods but one (Allah). So it's legal to believe in Visnu, or Thor, or Zeus, but illegal to share similar beliefs with Muslims that none of those gods exist.
This interpretation is completely wrong, Islam is not close to atheism at all.
Why, then, do these laws exist? Do these countries hate atheists, and if so, why?
"a country hating X" doesn't make any sense. It's a complex combination of historical, cultural and political factors, but to simplify:
[added] In a much broader perspective, there are lots of benefits for a society to accept religious freedom and to accept diversity (not only religious) in general. But it's a slow process which takes place over generations. One may also note that acting (or pretending to act) in the name of religion is often a cheap way to gain or maintain political power.
The goal of an authoritarian state is to put fear into any citizen who doesn't fit the central ruler's mold. Therefore it makes sense to criminalize any behavior which goes outside the established norms, as this makes it easier to prosecute anyone who dares to oppose the established rule in any manner or form.
Authoritarian states thus frequently ban things like homosexuality, prostitution, pornography, atheism, 'uncovered' women, foreigners, new forms of music, alcohol, etc. Sometimes a religious book is used for justification, at other times the wisdom of the infallible dictator is used instead. Whatever works best to keep the local populace on a short leash for as long as possible.
