(623-627 A.C)
“What!
Whenever an Apostle came to you with that which your souls did not desire, you
were insolent, some you called liars and some you slay”.
(Quran
20:87)
The
Jews in Madinah, who formed a large portion of the population, were also the wealthiest
and most learned among the inhabitants. When Rasulullah ﷺ first arrived in Madinah
he entered into an agreement with them, but the steadily growing influence of
Islam made them jealous and fearful lest the Muslims should soon eclipse their
power in Madinah. In secret, they kept on friendly terms with the Hypocrites and devised a plan to cause trouble to the Muslims.
The morals of the Jews had become most degenerate, and many verses in The Quran touching their immorality were revealed to Rasulullah ﷺ. As a Rasulullah ﷺ he felt it his duty to preach to them, and teach them to depart from evil and sin, and follow the right path. Besides their resentment at the preaching’s Rasulullah ﷺ amongst them, the principal cause that led to their antagonism towards Islam was the ever-diminishing of their influence over the Midianites, who were coming more rapidly than ever under the influence of Islam.
Soon what began as jealousy turned into positive
hatred, as a result of which hostilities that formerly were carried in secret
now became open. Rasulullah ﷺ himself
was not spared. They even spoke to him with insolence. For example, instead of
saying the Muslims greeting “Salamo Alayk,” they would go up to Rasulullah ﷺ
and say “Assam Alayk,” which meant “Death be on you,” while the former meant
“Peace be upon you,” while speaking to him, instead of using the word
“ra” ina,” which meant “listen to us,”
they would shorten the accent and say “ra’ina,” meaning “you are a fool.”
Another
method of theirs of harming Islam was to become Muslims, and shortly after to
become unbelievers again; so that others might think there was something
seriously amiss with the teaching of Islam. Besides, in the short time they
were in the fold of Islam, they would do their best to make other Muslims
follow them and apostate. They also turned their efforts to cause enmity
between two important tribes of Madinah, the Aus, and the Khazraj. Had they
succeeded in doing this, it would have broken the strength of the Muslims
completely, but the timely arrival of Rasulullah ﷺ foiled their attempt. Gradually matters came to such a pass that
the lives of the Muslims became endangered.
As it had been mentioned before, there were three Jewish tribes in Madinah: Banu Qurayza, Banu Nadir, and Banu Qaynuqa. The most mischievous and courageous one among them was Banu Qaynuqa. They were jewelers. Therefore, they were quite rich. They had also signed a treaty with Rasulullah ﷺ just like the other tribes. They had promised that they would not attempt any activities against Muslims, that they would defend Madinah against the enemy in case of an external attack against Madinah, and that they would not help the enemies of each other.
However, they had started to violate the treaty through their obvious mischievous acts and seditions, by trying to set Muslims against one another, and by cooperating with the polytheists of Quraysh. Meanwhile, the following incident that took place was the last straw that broke the camel’s back:
A woman from the Ansar of Madinah went to the shop of a Jewish jeweler to buy something; her face was covered. The Jews tried to make her open her face; however, the woman insisted on having her face covered. Meanwhile, a Jewish person secretly attached a thorn to the bottom part of her dress. When the woman stood up to leave, her dress was pulled and her legs were seen. The Jewish people who were there started to laugh at her.
They made insulting insinuations against Muslim womenfolk, and even composed verses concerning them. They went as far as to molest them in the street. An incident that caused great friction, and led to a skirmish called the Battle of Qaynuqa, arose because a Madinites woman went to the shop of a Jew where she was outraged. A Muslim passing heard the cries, and, going in, he was so infuriated that he slew the Jew, seeing which other Jews who had gathered there slew the Muslim. On hearing this, Rasulullah ﷺ went to the Jews and asked them to refrain from the such thing in the future, warning them that like the Quraysh they would be punished.
The woman screamed. When a Muslim who was passing by heard the scream, he intervened to help the woman. The Muslim and the Jews started to fight. The Muslims killed the Jew. Then, the other Jews who were there swooped down on the Muslim and martyred him. Thus, blood was shed between Jews and Muslims. The ones that caused the incident were the Jews. They violated the treaty by acting against the promises that had been made.
When the relatives of the Muslim who was martyred asked for help, Rasulullah ﷺ gathered the Jews of Banu Qaynuqa. Rasulullah ﷺ called them to Islam. Rasulullah ﷺ told them to give up their mischievous acts and that they could face the fate of the polytheists in Badr. However, the mischievous Jews made fun of the speech of Rasulullah ﷺ and gave the following answer arrogantly:
“O, Muhammad! Do not depend on your victory against the people who did not know how to fight. If you dare to fight us, you will see what kind of men we are.” Then, they left.
The verse that was sent down upon the conceited and arrogant answer of the Jews of Banu Qaynuqa declared what would happen to them as follows:
“Say to those who reject Faith: "Soon will ye be vanquished and gathered together to Hell―an evil bed indeed (to lie on)!’” Quran (3)
Another verse that was sent down regarding the same event gave Rasulullah ﷺ the permission to fight against these Jews, who violated their promise as follows: “If thou fearest treachery from any group, throw back (their Covenant) to them, (so as to be) on equal terms: for Allah loveth not the treacherous!” Quran (4)
Thereupon, Rasulullah ﷺ resolved: they would fight against the Jews of Banu Qaynuqa.
After making this decision, Rasulullah ﷺ appointed Lubaba b. Abdil Mundhir ra as his deputy in Madinah gave the white standard to Sayidina Hamzah RA and set out toward Banu Qaynuqa.
The Banu Qaynuqa Jews had a strong castle. When they heard that Rasulullah ﷺ was coming toward them, they withdrew to the castle. Rasulullah ﷺ besieged them. After the siege that lasted for fifteen days, they had to surrender. The Prophet ordered that all of them be tied by their hands one by one. Their hands were tie
The Jews answered that they would prove in the open fight that they were not cowards like the Quraysh. As this open challenge, Rasulullah ﷺ accepted it, and gave orders to the Muslims to make ready to fight the Jews. Having thus broken their compact with the Muslims, the Jews decided to fight. But finding the Muslims ready for battle they locked themselves up in a fort. The siege that followed lasted fifteen days. At the end of this period, the Jews surrendered and accept any decision Rasulullah ﷺ might make. They were told to leave Madinah immediately, which they did, seven hundred of them departing and settling in Syam (Syria).
What happened in the Jew's war?
The Battle with Bani Qaynuqa…
Forming a significant
community in and around Madinah, the Jews used to constantly tell their Arab neighbors of the coming of a prophet in the offing. Their genuine belief that Rasulullah ﷺ would hail from among their community meant they did not shy away from eagerly
spreading the news. Once the awaited prophet did in fact arrive, not from their
own people, but from among the Arabs, their feelings of enthusiasm gave way to
jealousy. Immediately changing their tune, they rejected his prophethood.
Allah, glory unto Him, pronounces, in relation:
Another reason for Jewish
bitterness was their love of the world, depicted in the Quran as follows:
Moreover, their monopoly of commercial life gave the Jews an air of superiority, aggravated by their seeming power, which led them to believe:
When reminded of Divine
Retribution for their mischief, they would reply, with confidence:
But Allah, glory unto Him,
declared otherwise:
Regardless of their pact with Rasulullah ﷺ, the Jews were fostering
inveterate feelings of hostility against him, which lead them to reignite old
rivalries between clans and fan the flames of mischief. Allah, glory unto Him,
exposed them to His Messenger and the Believers:
“O you who believe! Take not for intimates others than your own folk, who would spare no pains to ruin you; they love to hamper you. Hatred is revealed by (the utterance of) their mouths, but that which their breasts hide is greater. We have made plain for you the revelations if you will understand. Lo! You are those who love them though they love you not, and ye believe in all the Scripture.
When they fall in with you they say: We believe; but when they go apart they bite their fingertips at you, for rage. Say: Perish in your rage! Lo! Allah is Aware of what is hidden in (your) breasts. If a lucky chance befalls you, it is evil unto them, and if disaster strikes you they rejoice thereat. But if ye persevere and keep from evil their guile will never harm you. Lo! Allah is surrounding what they do.”
 |
The Jews, who, as declared by the ayah, were nursing a covert yet irrepressible grudge against the Believers, were visibly discomfited following the Muslim victory at Badr. The Jews of Banu Qaynuqa, in particular, decided to take their feelings of discomfort a step further and take on the Believers in battle. This was a prelude to their violation of the pact they had made with Rasulullah ﷺ.
The
Jews, aided by their close ally in Abdullah ibn Ubayy, the chief hypocrite, had
virtually turned the Medinan Market into a witch’s cauldron for devising plots
against the Believers. These plots had threatening consequences for Muslims;
they even included a plan of assassinating Rasulullah ﷺ.
The Jewish tribes called the people of Nadir and the people of Qurayza were just two hours away from Madinah.
Rasulullah ﷺ had signed various covenants with both tribes. The lives and properties of the Jews were secured; in return it was decided that they would provide financial aid.
Rasulullah ﷺ with ten of his companions went to the neighborhood of the Children of Nadir and requested their portion of blood money. At the same time, he wanted to know if they were loyal to the covenant. At first the Jews agreed with this request, but then they took advantage of Allah's Messenger's -peace be upon him- visit and they planned to assassinate him.
In the holy verses revealed regarding to this matter, Allah, the Exalted, commands:
They also said that they would not listen to anyone who would try to prevent the abandonment. The disbelievers swore and promised the Jews that they would support them against their enemies in the battle.
Rasulullah ﷺ said to the Jews: "Quit Madinah and go away" as a last offer. They responded "Death is easier for us than your offer."
There was no way other than the battle, anymore. The siege continued approximately 15 to 20 days.
Since the Jews would not risk to quit and fight outside the castle, it was as surety that the siege would be hard.
When the Muslim fighters began to demolish the houses and fell the date palms, the Children of Nadir yelled "O Muhammad! You forbid us from plotting mischief. Now for what purpose is cutting and burning the date palms."
Mostly, only the date palms that are not eatable were felled and burned. Jewish women could not put up with the felling of the first quality date palms called "Acve" and they were tearing their collars crying out.
Those yells made some of the Muslims hesitate for a while.
In the holy verse revealed as a result of this, Allah the Exalted has explained that the cutting and burning of the palm trees was by the permission of Almighty Allah:
Such a maneuver is one of the types of oppression that is applied in battles. The Children of Nadir did not want to be exiled from that land. So, cutting down some of their palm trees was a helper element of battle that helped to break the Jews' ties to their homeland.
If it is necessary to destroy something to win war, destruction is permissible.
Also, this holy verse indicates that only the date palms that prevented the operation were cut down and burned during the siege.
Since the Children of Nadir did not have the support that they expected from the Children of Qurayza and the hypocrites, they were scared and obliged to surrender.
Because they asked, Rasulullah ﷺ showed them mercy. Rasulullah ﷺ allowed them to take all of their goods other than the weapons, as much as they were able to load on their camels.
Before leaving, the Children of Nadir demolished their houses those, which the Muslims had not demolished. In order to prevent the residence of the Muslims, they knocked down the pillars of their houses, they collapsed the ceilings, and put their houses in a condition such that no one could live in them any longer.
The Jewish women put on their most valuable clothes, gold and silver jewelry in order to show the Muslims that they were not sad. They abandoned the city with a big show by playing tambourine and whistles. After their various mischief, they found the punishment very light.
This siege also lasted for about two weeks, at the end of which time the Banu Nadir surrendered, and asked Rasulullah ﷺ as a punishment, to allow them to leave Madinah as the other tribes had done. The request having been acceded to they left Madinah in a great procession, taking as much of their movable property as could be taken on their camels.
The procession was preceded by a band playing and women singing.
The little property they left behind included weapons of warfare, and of these
the Muslims took possession. Some of the Banu Nadir settled in Khaybar. Others
scattered and settled elsewhere.
The only Jewish tribe now left in Madinah was Banu Qurayza. As the had not been guilty of any treachery against the Muslims, they were allowed to renew their agreement with the Muslims. But the Banu Nadir, although banished and scattered, was still bent on causing trouble to Islam. They roamed about the desert stirring other tribes against Muslims. Seeing the Banu Qurayza and Muslims on friendly terms they did their best to cause rift in this friendship. In the beginning the Banu Qurayza were by no means anxious to quarrel with the Muslims, but the Banu Nadir informed them that all tribes, including the Quraysh, were combining forces to attack Muslims who, they believed, had not the slightest chance of survival.
The Big Lie About the Massacre
of the Jews of Banu Qurayza in Medina
When Rasulullah ﷺ first arrived in Madinah, an agreement was reached between the Muslims and the Jews, which gave the Jews the freedom to practice their religion and which also set out their rights and their duties. Among these duties was that in the case of war with Quraysh, the Jews would fight on the side of the Muslims.
Despite this agreement,
however, some of the Jewish tribes, who resented Rasulullah ﷺ presence in
Madinah, soon began to cause trouble amongst the Muslims. The first treacherous
act that they did, was to open secret communications with the Quraysh casting
aside their agreements with the Muslims. Moreover, they strained every nerve to
produce general dissatisfaction and bitterness against Rasulullah ﷺ,
his teachings and his faithful companions. A campaign of slander was organized
against Islam and its followers. The sacred words of the Holy Qur'an were
deliberately mispronounced in order to pervert their meanings. Satirical poems
were enthusiastically sung at public places in which the religion of Allah was
abjectly ridiculed. Inflammatory poems were recited with a view to keeping the
animosity of the hostile tribes alive.
The people of Qurayza were of
the Medinan Jews like Qaynuqa and Nadir.
The Big Lie About the Massacre
of the Jews of Banu Qurayza in Medina.
Before busting this old myth
with the help of a series of logical
analysis, let us first re-cap the history of the Jewish tribes of Medina
briefly.
The settlement of Khyber was 95 miles from Madinah and a stronghold of the Arab Jews. It consisted of nine or ten Jewish forts. At Khyber, various pagan Arab tribes that opposed Rasulullah ﷺ were also given refuge by the Jews. Khyber stayed an active center of conspiracies against the Muslims in Medina for almost two years. It was on the 7th year of the Hijrah that Rasulullah ﷺ was left with no other choice but to confront this source of aggression.
Battle of the Trench (Ghazwa-e-Khandaq) was fought on 5th Hijrah, two years prior to the battle in Khyber. By this time the Jewish tribe of Banu Nadir had already been expelled from Madinah for its continuous role as a trouble maker, many of whose adherents had settled in Khyber. Banu Qaynuqa (or Kanuka as in Hebrew) was expelled for its declaration of war on Rasulullah ﷺ some time after the Battle of Badr which took place on 3rd Hijrah. It's recounted that some adherents of Banu Qaynuqa settled in Wadi-e-Kura, north of Madinah and some went to Syria. But in reality, many of them landed up in Khyber. Khyber also became the destination of several members of the tribe of Banu Qurayza after their defeat in the Battle of Trench in 5th Hijrah.
That common story about the "massacre of Banu Qurayza" after Battle of the Trench is one of the biggest fairy tales in world history. Unfortunately, like many orientalists, even some Muslim historians have used this fabrication in their works.
Evidence from the Glorious Quran
Referring to the Sole Criterion, the Noble Quran, Verses 33:26, there is absolutely NO indication of 'mass killing' of Banu Qurayza.
Verse 33:26 is a reference to the treachery of Banu Qurayza and when the Muslim army confronted them after the Battle of the Trench. Mark the words of Verse 33:26 - "some ye slew, and ye made captive some." This clearly denotes few people being killed in the battle and few being taken as prisoners. It includes only those who were on the frontline of the battle.
A massacre is never described in this manner. In particular, the language and style of the Noble Quran is so articulate that whichever event is described, whether briefly or in detail, is very vividly and coherently expressed with no scope of any misunderstandings. The expression mentioning the casualties of Banu Qurayza in Verse 33:26 by no means indicates execution-style killing of the entire tribe. That's crystal clear.
This Jewish tribe showed open treachery during the Battle of the Trench. After the battle when Quraysh along with various pagan clans had deserted the battlefield, the Muslims faced up to deal with Banu Qurayza who were in their Jewish stronghold of Medina. Whatever casualties took place was during the fight between the Muslims and the adherents of Banu Qurayza.
This is precisely what the Quran defines in the above mentioned Verse. As we can see, the allusion to the confrontation between the Muslims and Banu Qurayza in the Quran is brief and there is no reference whatsoever to any mass slaughter even in the remotest sense. The Quran refers to it in a battle context, to those who were actually fighting. The Quran is the only authority to be accepted without hesitation or doubt.
The version of all women and children taken prisoners is also absurd, without any plausible evidence and completely opposed to Quranic rules concerning prisoners of war, which is: Either they are to be granted their freedom or they are permitted to be ransomed.
Many historical data conform with information contained in the Glorious Quran (V.33:26)
Many history books recounting
the story of Qurayza have stated that a few specific persons were named during
the event as having been put to death, some of whom were described as
particularly active in their hostility. It is the reasonable conclusion that those
were the ones who led the sedition and who were consequently punished - NOT the
whole tribe.
The myth of Banu Qurayza is inconsistent compared to the decisions of Muslims concerning Banu Nadir and Qunaika
It is unlikely, if not
impossible, that the Banu Qurayza should be slaughtered when the other Jewish
tribes of Banu Nadir and Qaynuqa which had surrendered earlier were treated
leniently and allowed to go for the same crime. Abu Ubayd
Salam relates in his Kitab al-Amwal the final words of Rasulullah ﷺ to Banu Qurayza: "I have known the extent of your hostility to Allah and to
His apostle, yet that does not prevent me from treating you as I treated your
brethren." This is reported as Rasulullah ﷺ's response after the surrender of Banu Qurayzah.
No tangible historical evidence of such an incident
Had this slaughter actually
happened and if so many hundreds of people had actually been put to death in
the "market-place" (as babbled in the fabricated stories and forged
hadiths), it's very strange and unusual that there was never any trace of mass
graves nor any sites of mass burial anywhere in Madinah, even though many other
important historical landmarks were preserved for a long time, some are present
even now. But absolutely nothing to
indicate that an entire tribe had been executed and buried at any spot in
Madinah.
No evidence of Saad bin Muaz ra being told to decide the fate of Banu Qurayza other than forged narrations
Just as the descendants of
Banu Qurayza would want to glorify their ancestors, so did the descendants of
Saad bin Muaz, the chief of Aus tribe of Madinah whose adherent was Banu
Qurayza. According to the myth, Rasulullah ﷺ requested Saad bin Muad to make a decision about the fate of
Banu Qurayza. Later, evidence emerged
that that part of the story which claims all men of Banu Qurayza were put to
death and women and children taken prisoners was transmitted from one of Saad's
direct descendants with no evidence that Rasulullah ﷺ at all approached Saad to
decide about Banu Qurayza. In other
words, this account from one of Saad's descendants is exactly as unreliable,
rather utterly false, as 99.9% of the fabricated Hadith we have read.
Senseless gossips only expose this myth still more
As usual, lots of illogical
narrations from irrelevant personalities have come up, hurling one falsehood
upon another concerning the Banu Qurayza story.
For example, one historical narration claims that all prisoners of Banu
Qurayza were incarcerated in the house of a woman from Banu al-Najjar. No one even knows who this woman was nor does
this Arab tribe of Banu al-Najjar have any significance in Islamic
History. Moreover, how could so many
hundreds of prisoners be accommodated in a common house belonging to a woman of
Banu al-Najjar? Just doesn't make sense.
Gossip mongering by Arab Jews a prime factor for distortions, creation of this tale and confusion among historians
The blatant fact of the matter
is that stories regarding the Arab Jews have been distorted and manipulated
grossly by their descendants until almost 200 years after the passing away of Rasulullah ﷺ. Regarding the
unacceptable story of the slaughter of Banu Qurayza, the real source of this
myth was the descendants of the Jews of Madinah.
What is being confused or intentionally distorted by various historians is the inside story coming directly from the Jews of Banu Qurayza in the words of their leader, Kaab bin Asad, who in his lengthy and aggressive speech is reported to have suggested that Banu Qurayza should eliminate their women and children and make a last desperate attempt against the Muslim army. It's interesting to note that according to the information contained in several episodes of history, an ancient and frantic Jewish tradition in times of complete despair and distress was mass suicide. That tallies with the report in some history books about Kaab bin Asad's intentions in his long and aggressive speech. However, another historical version suggests that many Jews of Banu Qurayza refused to commit suicide, giving further evidence that NO mass death was inflicted upon the Jews, neither by the Muslims nor by themselves. It also explains how scores of adherents of Banu Qurayza were later found to have joined the Jewish stronghold at Khyber, giving still greater credence to the fact that after the Battle of the Trench, the tribe of Banu Qurayza was expelled from Madinah and NOT executed en masse.
False hadith only
strengthened the falsified version of the Banu Qurayza story
When the culture of Hadith
narrations began in full swing during the reign of the Umayyads, a lot of those
young so-called sahabas who had never even met or seen Rasulullah ﷺ began
narrating tons of fabrications. Several
of them who converted to Islam were Jews or Christians. They were brazen opportunists with no sincere
attachments to Faith. They forged plenty
of narrations that were discreetly supportive of the Jewish tribes of Arabia.
Banu Qaynuqa Leave Madinah
The real aim of Rasulullah ﷺ was to keep the mischief and sedition of the Jews away from Madinah and to prevent the dangers caused by them. He reached his aim by expelling them from Madinah.
The time given to Banu Qaynuqa to leave Madinah was three days. When the period of three days ended, they set off to Damascus. When they reached Wadi al-Qura, they stayed there for a month.
The Jews who lived there gave horses and camels to those who did not have anything to ride on and food to all of them. Then, the Banu Qaynuqa Jews left Wadi al-Qura, reached Azrua and settled there. They soon perished away.
Conclusion
Many modern analysts and
historians have opined that in the early days a certain version of the myth of
Banu Qurayzah was cooked up and preserved by the descendants of Banu
Qurayza. Then, the later generations of
the Jewish descendants of Banu Qurayza superimposed the details of the siege of
Masada on the already fabricated story of the siege of Banu Qurayza, perhaps
through confusion but more likely intentionally - in other words, medieval
Jewish propaganda.
Heba E. Husseyn:
Abdullah b. Ubay Applies to the Prophet:
Meanwhile, the leader of the munafiqs, Abdullah b. Ubayy, who was the ally of Banu Qaynuqa, went to Rasulullah ﷺ. He said, “O Muhammad! Do my allies a favor; forgive them.”
Rasulullah ﷺ ignored the words of Abdullah b. Ubayy. Thereupon, he repeated his words:
“O Muhammad! Do my allies a favor; forgive them!”
This time, Rasulullah ﷺ turned his face away.
However, Abdullah b. Ubayy continued to repeat the same things:
Thereupon, Rasulullah ﷺsaid,
“Untie them. May God curse them and those who are with them!” He gave up the idea of killing Banu Qaynuqa and ordered them to be expelled to Damascus from Madinah.
The Words of Ubadah b. Samit ra
Ubada b. Samit, from Banu Awf, was also an ally of the Banu Qaynuqa Jews. He also came to Rasulullah ﷺ to ask him let them free. When he witnessed what happened between Rasulullah ﷺ and Abdullah b. Ubayy, he said, “O Messenger of God! I have become the friend of God, His Prophet and believers. I have given up being allies and friends with those unbelievers.” He declared that he gave up being allies and friends with the Banu Qaynuqa Jews.
Thereupon, the following verse was sent down:
“O ye who believe! take not the Jews and the Christians for your friends and protectors: they are but friends and protectors to each other. (7)
And he amongst you that turns to them (for friendship) is of them. Verily Allah guided not a people unjust.” (8) to ask him let them free. When he witnessed what happened between Rasulullah ﷺ and Abdullah b. Ubayy, he said, “O Messenger of God! I have become the friend of God, His Prophet and believers. I have given up being allies and friends with those unbelievers.” He declared that he gave up being allies and friends with the Banu Qaynuqa Jews.
Banu Qaynuqa Leave Madinah
The real aim of Rasulullah ﷺ was to keep the mischief and sedition of the Jews away from Madinah and to prevent the dangers caused by them. He reached his aim by expelling them from Madinah.
The time given to Banu Qaynuqa to leave Madinah was three days. When the period of three days ended, they set off to Damascus. When they reached Wadi al-Qura, they stayed there for a month.
The Jews who lived there gave horses and camels to those who did not have anything to ride on and food to all of them. Then, the Banu Qaynuqa Jews left Wadi al-Qura, reached Azrua and settled there. They soon perished away.
THE EXPEDITION OF SAWIQ
(2nd Year of Hijrah, Dhul-Hijjah, 5 Sunday)
When seven hundred people from the Jews of Banu Qaynuqa were expelled from Madinah, the city felt relieved. This act of Rasulullah ﷺ was very important in terms of the development of Islam. If those Jews, who were the source of mischief and sedition, had been left in Madinah, they would have definitely set many treacherous plans against Muslims. Their banishment prevented them from doing so.
Peace and calm prevailed in the city.
However, the security was not very good outside the city. The polytheists of Quraysh did not forget the pain of their defeat in Badr; they did not want to forget it, either. When many of the notables of the Quraysh were killed, Abu Sufyan started to regard himself as the leader of the Quraysh; he started to make preparations in order to take the revenge of Badr. He vowed that he would not approach women, would not put on nice smells and would not have a bath or shower unless he took his revenge on Muslims. (10)
In order to keep his vow, Abu Sufyan approached Madinah with two hundred cavalrymen. In fact, he himself knew very well that he could not fight against Muslims with that army. However, he went to Madinah only to keep his vow and to show that he did not give up his vow.
At night, he went to the leader of the Jewish tribe Banu Nadr, who were still residing in Madinah then, and received some secret information about Muslims from him.
Then, the polytheists approached a place called Urayz, which was three miles away from Madinah, and set fire to a date orchard and two houses. Meanwhile they martyred a Muslim from Ansar and his worker, who were defenseless and who were working on the field. (11)
Abu Sufyan regarded that he had kept his vow by having done so and left that place rapidly lest he should be followed and got caught; and he set off to Makkah.
The Messenger of God was informed about the attack. He left Madinah with two hundred men from Ansar and Muhajirs to follow the polytheists. He did not find anyone. He found out that they had fled rapidly.
The polytheists had brought roasted wheat flour called “sawiq” with them as food. They left the bags of flour on the way because they were heavy and prevented them from running away fast. The mujahids collected those bags of sawiq. That is why the expedition was given the name “sawiq”. (12)
1. Ibn Hisham, Sirah, V. 3, p. 51
2. Ibn Hisham, ibid, V. 3, p. 50
3. Aal-i Imran, 12
4. al-Anfal, 58
5. Ibn Sa’d, Tabaqat, V. 2, p. 29; Tabari, Tarikh, V. 2, p. 297.
6. Ibn Sa’d, ibid, V. 2, p. 29; Tabari, ibid, V. 2, p. 297.
7. “What is the criterion for establishing friendship and relationship with non-Muslims? Is establishing only military and economic alliances included in the prohibitive boundaries of the Quran?” Badiuzzaman Said Nursi answers those questions and similar ones that can come to the mind convincingly in his book “Münazarat”. We quote the following from his book:
“Question: The Quran prohibits loving Jews and Christians.
“How can you say, ‘make friends with them’?”
“Answer: First of all, the evidence is sound and definite but its meaning and judgment needs to be sound and definite, too. However, interpretations and possibilities are present. The prohibition of the Quran is not general but absolute. The absolute one can have some conditions. Time is a great interpreter; if it shows its conditions, it is not opposed. If the judgment is based on wishes, the point of joining shows the cause of the judgment.
That is, this prohibition for Jews and Christians is because they reflect Judaism and Christianity. A person is not loved because of his personality; he may be loved because of his attributes and art. It is not necessary for every attribute of a Muslim to be a Muslim attribute. Similarly, not all attributes of an unbeliever are unbeliever attributes. Therefore, why should it not be permissible to have relations with them in terms of their Muslim attributes and useful arts? If you have a wife from the People of the Book, you shall certainly love her!
Secondly, during the Era of Bliss, a great religious revolution took place. Since this revolution caused all of the minds to concentrate on the religion, people loved and hated others due to religion. Therefore, love of non-Muslims implied hypocrisy. However, today the revolution in the world is a strange worldly civilization. What keeps the minds and brains busy is civilization, progress and the world. Besides, most of the Jews and Christians are not faithful to their religions. The reason why we become friends with them is to take their civilization and technology, and to maintain the law and order, which is an essential for the worldly bliss. This kind of friendship is by no means prohibited by the Quran.”
(Badiuzzaman Said Nursi, Münazarat, p. 26-27)
8. Al-Maida, 51.
9. Balazuri, Ansab, V. 1, p. 309.
10. Ibn Sa’d, Tabaqat, V. 2, p. 30.
11. Ibn Hisham, Sirah, V. 3, p. 48; Ibn Sa’d, ibid, V. 2, p. 30; Tabari, Tarikh, V. 2, p. 299.
12. Ibn Hisham, ibid, V. 3, p. 48; Ibn Sa’d, ibid, V. 2, p. 30. was very important in terms of the development of Islam. If those Jews, who were the source of mischief and sedition, had been left in Madinah, they would have definitely set many treacherous plans against Muslims. Their banishment prevented them from doing so.
d, V. 3, p. 48; Ibn Sa’d, ibid, V. 2, p. 30.
13>Heba E. Husseyn:
