Muhammad, the War-Lord of Medina

A Muslim on Facebook claimed that Muhammad only ever fought in self-defence. There
is only one possible response to this assertion: research every battle that Muhammad ever
fought and assess why he fought it.

Part 1: from the Hijra to Uhud

1. Quraysh tribe. Muhammad made six attempts to commit highway robbery against
Quraysh trade-caravans. All six attempts failed, but the Quraysh knew his intentions.
(Ibn Ishaq 231-233, 280-281, 284-286, 504. Waqidi 8. Ibn Saad 2:4-7. Baladhuri 1:33.
Tabari 9:118.)

2. Quraysh tribe. At the raid of Nakhla in January 624 Muhammad’s men not only stole
the merchandise but murdered the driver. At first Muhammad denied that he had
permitted this raid, but later he received a special revelation from Allah that the Quraysh
had deserved it; he kept the loot and he did not pay blood-money for the dead man.
(Quran 2:217, 190-191, 216. Ibn Ishaq 286-288, 298. Ibn Hisham #349, #350. Waqidi 8-11.
Ibn Saad 2:7-9. Tabari 9:118-119.)

3. Quraysh tribe. The Battle of Badr in March 624 was Muhammad’s first big war-crime.
He trekked across the desert looking for a Quraysh caravan to rob. The caravan escaped,
but the Quraysh army had marched out to protect it. The Muslim historians admit that
the Quraysh had no intention of fighting unless the Muslims struck first, which they did
not expect to happen. However, Muhammad initiated hostilities by blocking and
monopolising the only water-supply in Badr. He attacked the Quraysh, killed 68 men and
captured 66 prisoners. (Quran 8. Ibn Ishaq 136, 260, 289-339. Ibn Hisham #354-356, #367,
#371-372, #375, #377, #384, #499-536. Waqidi 12–59. Ibn Saad 2:9-16; 3:35, 337, 340.
Baladhuri 1:129. Bukhari 2:23:452; 3:38:498; 4:53:369; 5:59:292, 309-311, 314; 6:60:168,
404. Muslim 19:4341, 4360, 4394, 4421, 4424; 20:4680; 40:6870. Abu Dawud 14:2659,
2675, 2731-2732, 2741; 19:2995. Nasa’i 3:21:2076-2078. Tirmidhi 3:19:1561. Ibn Maja
4:24:2808. Tabari 7:29-33, 55-56. Suyuti 35.)

4. Qaynuqa tribe. Within a month of Badr, Muhammad demanded that the Qaynuqa Jews
in Medina convert to Islam. When they refused, he besieged them until they surrendered.
He wanted to kill them, but he was not yet powerful enough to resist demands that he
settle for exiling them from Medina instead. (Quran 5:54-59. Ibn Ishaq 363-364. Ibn
Hisham #568; #570. Waqidi 87-90. Ibn Saad 2:32. Baladhuri 1:33. Abu Dawud 19:2995.
Tabari 7:87.)

5. Three attacks on the Ghatafan and Sulaym tribes. In summer 624 Muhammad
raided the Ghatafan and Sulaym tribes. The Ghatafan were allied to Medina’s Jews and the
Sulaym had intermarried with the Quraysh. Muhammad claimed that these tribes were
plotting assaults on Medina, but nothing of the kind ever happened, and even when
Muhammad invaded the tribes right in their headquarters, he never found any evidence
of any such plots. (Ibn Ishaq 360-362. Waqidi 90-98. Ibn Saad 2:34-41. Tabari 7:88-89;
9:119.)
6. Nadir and Qurayza tribes. In September 624 Muhammad ordered the Muslims, “Kill
any Jew who falls into your hands!” A Muslim duly murdered his Jewish business partner.
The Jews hastily negotiated a new treaty with Muhammad before anyone else could be
killed; but this begs the question of why Muhammad felt free to kill random Jews simply
because he didn’t happen to have a treaty with them. (Ibn Ishaq 368-369. Waqidi 95-96.
Ibn Saad 2:37-39. Baladhuri 1:41. Abu Dawud 19:2994, 2996. Tabari 7:97-98.)

7. Quraysh tribe. In November 624 Muhammad sent his adopted son Zayd to rob
another Quraysh caravan. The merchants managed to escape, but Zayd captured the
goods and a Bedouin guide named Furat. Zayd promised not to kill Furat if only he would
convert to Islam, so the guide converted. Hence Furat’s inglorious claim to fame is that he
was the first man in history to be forcibly converted to Islam. (Ibn Ishaq 364. Waqidi 98-
99. Ibn Saad 2:42. Tabari 7:98-99.)

8. Quraysh & Bakr tribes. In March 625 the Quraysh and their Bakr allies marched out
to Medina with an army of 3,000 to fight the Muslims. The result was the Battle of Uhud,
which Muhammad lost. Uhud was notable for being the first of Muhammad’s military
engagements in which he was not the aggressor. While there were obvious reasons why
the Quraysh felt the need for revenge, if not pre-emptive defence, it was nevertheless a
fight that they started and in which Muhammad was placed on the defensive. (Ibn Ishaq
370-399. Ibn Hisham #586; #613; #635. Waqidi 99-151. Ibn Saad 2:49-51. Baladhuri 1:80,
477. Bukhari 2:23:427, 429, 431, 436; 3:30:108; 4:31:3464; 4:52:131, 159, 276; 4:54:510;
5:58:156, 161; 5:59:322, 375, 380, 390, 392-394, 396, 399, 404, 406; 6:60:85; 7:62:175;
7:71:618; 8:78:661; 9:83:22, 28. Muslim 19:4413, 4414, 4455. Abu Dawud 14:2584, 2656,
2659; 20:3132-3133, 3209. Nasa’i 1:25:3151; 3:21:1957, 2004, 2012-2013, 2017-2018,
2020. Tirmidhi 2:5:106; 2:5:1036; 3:21:1692, 1713; 4:31:3464; 5:44:3002, 3007-3008, 3129;
5:46:3738. Ibn Maja 1:6:1513; 4:24:2806; 4:31:3465; 5:36:4027. Tabari 7:105-134.)

I could go on, but you have the picture now. Muhammad kept fighting for the next five
years. Never once was he attacked by any tribe that had not first suffered military
hostility from Medina. A few of these tribes made vengeance-strikes for some prior attack
from Muhammad, but the majority were initiated by Muhammad for no particular reason.
Muhammad conquered Mecca in January 630, after which the Arabs were so frightened
of him that many tribes surrendered to him before he had even declared war on them.
However, he still found excuses to fight tribes in the far south and the far north right up
to the end of his life.

Part 2: from Uhud to the Qurayza

Earlier we raised the question of whether Muhammad fought his numerous wars “only in
defence” or sometimes for other reasons. The only way to analyse this is to look at his
wars one by one. Here we will survey his military activities between June 625 and May
627.

9. The Asad tribe. In June 625 Muhammad heard a rumour that some members of the
Asad tribe were planning to raid Medina while other members of the tribe opposed this
plan. Muhammad sent his cousin Abu Salama to “go to the Asad tribe’s territory and attack
them before they attack you.” The Asad fled when they heard of Abu Salama’s approach
(so, clearly, there had been no serious designs against Medina at leadership level). The
Muslims were able to capture a few men and some animals. (Ibn Ishaq 661-662. Waqidi
166-168. Ibn Saad 2:59. Tabari 9:119.)

10. The Hudhayl tribe. In June 625 Muhammad heard that a powerful chief, Khalid al-
Huhali, was gathering his men together for a military operation near Urana or Nakhla.
Since this was on the route where Muhammad robbed Quraysh caravans, he perceived
this as an attempt to defend the caravans, hence as an attack on himself. He sent an
assassin, who stabbed and beheaded Khalid. After this no more was heard about the plot,
which suggests that, if it had existed, it had not been at an advanced stage of preparation.
(Ibn Ishaq 666. Ibn Hisham #906. Waqidi 261-262. Ibn Saad 2:60-61. Abu Dawud 4:1244.
Tabari 9:121-122.)

The following month, the Hudhayl tribe took revenge. They sent some men who
pretended to be interested in Islam, and Muhammad sent ten men to teach their tribe,
instructing them at the same time to spy on Mecca. On the journey, the Hudhayl
ambushed the missionaries and killed eight of them. The other two were sold as slaves in
Mecca, where the Meccans bought and killed them. (Ibn Ishaq 426-429. Ibn Hisham #659-
667. Waqidi 173-177. Ibn Saad 2:66-68. Bukhari 4:52:281; 5:59:325, 412. Abu Dawud
14:2654. Tabari 7:143-147; 9:119.)

11. The Amir tribe. In July 625 Abu Bara, chief of the powerful Amir tribes, invited
Muhammad to an alliance. This basically meant that he wanted military help against his
rebellious nephew. Muhammad agreed to the alliance on condition that he was allowed
to teach Islam to the Amir, and Abu Bara guaranteed the protection of the Muslim
missionaries. These “missionaries” were either forty or seventy armed men. On their
journey, they were spotted by Abu Bara’s nephew, who recognised that this meant
nothing good for himself. He incited his allies in the Sulaym tribe to attack them. The
Sulaym tribe, who had suffered prior aggression from the Muslims (see above),
ambushed the delegation and massacred them. (Ibn Ishaq 433-435. Waqidi 169-172. Ibn
Saad 2:61-65. Bukhari 4:52:57, 299 (this hadith is confused; it conflates this episode with
the conflict with the Hudhayl tribe); 5:59:416-417. Tabari 7:151-156; 9:119.)

12. Abu Sufyan (Quraysh tribe). Muhammad sent a man to assassinate Abu Sufyan, the
chief of Mecca. The sources disagree about his motive. Ibn Ishaq says it was because Abu
Sufyan had condoned the murder of Muhammad’s spies by the Hudhayl tribe. Ibn Saad
says it was because Abu Sufyan had first sent an assassin to Medina to kill Muhammad.
The timing was certainly soon after the slaying of the Hudhayl spies, since their corpses
were still hanging on stakes when the Muslim assassin arrived in Mecca; but Ibn Saad is
apparently confused about this chronology, since he places the story out of sequence in
early 628. The fact that Ibn Ishaq, Ibn Hisham and Tabari do not mention that Abu Sufyan
tried to kill Muhammad, although this should have been a very important motive,
suggests that Ibn Saad stuck two unrelated traditions together. This is not to deny that
Abu Sufyan at some date tried to assassinate Muhammad, only that we cannot be certain
that Muhammad’s attempt on Abu Sufyan was a direct vengeance-strike. Muhammad’s
would-be assassin failed his mission, as he never came close to Abu Sufyan. Instead, on
his homeward journey, he murdered three other men who were expressing some anti-
Muslim sentiments. Muhammad was pleased about this. (Ibn Ishaq 673-675. Ibn Hisham
#913. Ibn Saad 2:115-117. Tabari 7:147-150.)
13. The Nadir tribe. The Nadir were a Jewish tribe in Medina. In August 625 Muhammad
accused them of plotting to kill him, his evidence for the plot being that “Allah told me.”
He ordered the Nadir to leave Medina or he would behead them. When the Nadir refused
to leave, Muhammad besieged their castles. At first the Nadir resisted the siege, so
Muhammad began to burn their date-orchards. The Nadir then surrendered, and
Muhammad evicted them from Medina. A significant point to note here is that most of the
Nadir settled in Khaybar. (Quran 59:1-23. Ibn Ishaq 437-439. Ibn Hisham #679-683.
Waqidi 177-186. Ibn Saad 2:68-71. Baladhuri 1:34-39. Bukhari 3:39:519; 4:52:263;
5:59:362, 365, 366; 6:60:406. Muslim 19:4325-4326, 4364. Abu Dawud 14:2676; 19:2998-
2999. Tirmidhi 3:19:1552; 5:44:3302. Ibn Maja 4:24:2845. Tabari 7:156-161.)

14. The Quraysh tribe. After the Battle of Uhud, Abu Sufyan had challenged Muhammad
to a re-match at Badr. In April 626 Muhammad marched out to Badr with 1,500 warriors,
expecting to fight Abu Sufyan there. But Abu Sufyan never turned up and there was no
battle. (Ibn Ishaq 447-448. Ibn Hisham #692–694. Waqidi 189-192. Ibn Saad 2:71-73.
Tabari 7:165-167.)

15. The Ghatafan tribe. In June 626 Muhammad reported that some Ghatafan clans were
planning to attack him. He marched out to confront them at Mount Dhat al-Riqa. The
Ghatafan army that met the Muslims there was so huge that they were afraid to attack;
but the Ghatafan did not attack either. This suggests that the Ghatafan army was not
aggressive but defensive, most likely assembled only after they heard that Muhammad
was on his way. Eventually the Bedouins fled into the mountains and no fighting occurred.
The Muslims captured some women and killed one of them. (Ibn Ishaq 445-447. Ibn
Hisham #687–691. Waqidi 194-197. Ibn Saad 2:74-75. Bukhari 1:59:449. Abu Dawud
4:1234, 1237. Tabari 7:161-164.)

16. Kalb tribe. In August or September 626 Muhammad heard that some bandits were
harassing the merchants at Dumat al-Jandal on the Syrian border, which damaged the
trade-routes to Medina. The bandits might ultimately expand operations and attack
Medina, although Dumat al-Jandal was so far away (a fortnight’s journey) that this could
not have posed any immediate threat. Muhammad did not approach the city in friendship,
asking how they might work together to deal with the bandits. Instead, he exploited the
city’s weakness by marching to attack because he had heard that this would terrify the
Roman Emperor. When he arrived at the city, he found that the citizens had fled. Although
he stole some animals, there was no fighting. (Ibn Ishaq 449. Ibn Hisham #695. Waqidi
197-198. Ibn Saad 2:76. Baladhuri 1:97. Tabari 8:4-5.)

17. Battle of the Ditch (multiple tribes). In March 627 Abu Sufyan gathered his allies
from the Ghatafan, Sulaym, Asad and other tribes and besieged Medina. Muhammad
resisted the attack by digging a ditch around the city. The Quraysh and their allies could
not cross the ditch, so there was very little fighting. When it became clear that there was
no way to attack Medina, the Quraysh and their allies went home. (Quran 33:9-25. Ibn
Ishaq 450-460. Malik 20:20; 36:33; 54:33. Ibn Hisham #696-704. Waqidi 216-242. Ibn Saad
2:80-91. Bukhari 1:8:452; 1:10:570, 572; 1:11:614; 2:14:67; 4:52:68, 87, 100; 4:56:809;
5:58:140; 5:59:423, 425, 427, 429-430, 433, 437-438, 443; 6:60:57; 8:75:405; 8:76:423;
8:77:617. Muslim 4:1313, 1318; 19:4370, 4444, 4448; 20:4605; 23:5057; 31:5938, 5941;
41:6966; 43:7164. Abu Dawud 2:409; 19:2951; 39:4392. Nasa’i 1:7:662-663; 1:8:711;
1:25:3178; 2:13:1367; 4:27:3461. Tirmidhi 1:2:179-180. Tirmidhi, Shama’il 34:224. Ibn
Maja 1:2:684; 1:6:1558; 20:2640. Tabari 8:5-27.)

18. Qurayza tribe. Immediately after the Battle of the Ditch, Muhammad claimed that
Allah had ordered him to fight the Qurayza, the last Jewish tribe remaining in Medina. He
besieged them until they surrendered, upon which he beheaded all the men and sold the
women and children into slavery. The political significance of this battle was that it ended
the power of any non-Muslims left in Medina. There were no more Jewish or polytheistic
tribes, and the few isolated individuals who clung to their old faiths were of no
importance. (Quran 33:26-27. Ibn Ishaq 461-468. Ibn Hisham #705–722. Waqidi 244-256.
Ibn Saad 2:91-96. Baladhuri 1:40-41. Bukhari 2:14:67; 4:52:68, 280; 5:57:66; 5:58:148;
5:59:362, 443-445, 447-449; 8:74:278. Muslim 19:4364, 4368, 4370, 4374; 26:5557. Tabari
8:27-41.)

Analysis

Four times Muhammad attacked because he claimed that the other tribe was plotting
against him. There is no evidence that any of these alleged plots was real. Since the one
attributed to the Nadir was certainly a fabrication, it is quite likely that the others (Asad,
Hudhayl and Ghatafan) were also fabrications, devised to give Muhammad an excuse for
fighting. Twice he interfered in other tribes’ conflicts when nobody was threatening him
(Amir and Dumat al-Jandal). The fact that the Amir expedition ended badly for
Muhammad and that the Hudhayl tribe took revenge did not transform Muhammad’s
warriors into innocent victims. He had started the fights against those tribes at a time
when they were no threat to him.

The only reason he gave for attacking the Qurayza tribe was that the angel Gabriel had
instructed him to. The fact that he could not think of a better pretext suggests that there
was none. Pragmatically, it was obvious that the Qurayza were likely to turn against him
as soon as they were able to, but it had not happened yet, and it was only a future
probability because, once again, Muhammad had started the fight.

The other battles were the continuation of the war that Muhammad had started with the
Quraysh in Mecca. He even agreed to meet Abu Sufyan at Badr just to continue the conflict,
when there was no direct threat to either of them; it was Abu Sufyan who proved he had
more sense by not turning up for the fight. When Muhammad tried to assassinate Abu
Sufyan, it is not clear whether he had immediate provocation or not, but it was certainly
not a new conflict. Although the Battle of the Ditch looks superficially defensive, with a
great coalition of tribes besieging Muhammad in his home territory, they were all tribes
whom he had attacked in the past. It was their revenge in a fight that he had begun.

Conclusion

Muhammad was not the only bully in the desert, but he seems to have been the most
aggressive and effective one. He was not in the least better than the war-lords from other
tribes. Only the Battle of the Ditch was defensive, and even that one needs to be qualified
as part of an ongoing struggle. He fought his other battles in direct aggression, whether
for revenge, as pre-emptive strikes, for political advantage or for plunder.
Part 3: from the Qurayza to Muraysi

Earlier we raised the question of whether Muhammad fought his numerous wars “only in
defence” or sometimes for other reasons. The only way to analyse this is to look at his
wars one by one. Here we will survey his military activities between June 627 and January
628. By now Muhammad was supreme in Medina; nobody dared attack him there again.
He was safe to concentrate on his duties as a peaceful law-maker and prophet. So did he
stop fighting? On the contrary, he fought so many wars that we shall only study the first
seven months. We don’t have space to study a longer period here.

19. Amir tribe (al-Qurata clan). In June 627 Muhammad sent thirty Muslims to raid to
the Qurata clan. It is not clear why; he had had no previous dealings with them, and their
parent-tribe, the Amir, were supposed to be his allies. Perhaps Abu Bara had died by then,
and perhaps Muhammad wanted to punish the Amir for letting his men be murdered two
years earlier; but Abu Bara and his nephew were not from the Qurata clan. The Muslims
routed the clan, killed ten men and stole 150 camels and 3000 goats.

The only prisoner whom they brought back to Medina was not a Qurati. By a very lucky
coincidence, he turned out to be the Chief of the Hanifa tribe. Muhammad tied him to a
pillar of the mosque and held him captive until he agreed to become a Muslim. Then he
was released to work for Muhammad. The Hanifa were a corn-growing tribe who
provided nearly all of Mecca’s food. The newly-converted chief now blockaded the trade-
routes and prevented any food reaching Mecca. Over the next nine months, the Quraysh
suffered an artificial famine that brought them to the edge of starvation. (Ibn Ishaq 662,
676-677. Ibn Hisham #915. Waqidi 262-263. Ibn Saad 2:96-97. Bukhari 1:8:451, 458;
3:41:604-605; 5:59:658. Muslim 19:4361. Tabari 8:42-43; 9:119. Ibn Hajar, Bulugh 1:121.)

20. Hudhayl tribe. In either July or September 627 Muhammad took an army of 200 men
to punish the Hudhayl tribe for murdering the ten Muslims two years earlier. The
Hudhayl heard of their approach and fled to the mountains, so nothing happened.
Muhammad changed his homeward route so that his army were travelling just close
enough to Mecca to alarm the Quraysh. (Ibn Ishaq 485-486, 660. Ibn Hisham #731. Waqidi
263-264. Ibn Saad 2:97-99. Tabari 8:42-43.)

21. Asad tribe. In August 627 Muhammad sent forty men to Ghamra Marzuq, a well
belonging to the Asad tribe. The Asad fled before there was any fighting, but the Muslims
stole 200 camels. Muhammad did not give any reason for this attack, but it was probably
revenge because the Asad had fought in the Battle of the Ditch. (Ibn Ishaq 661. Waqidi 270.
Ibn Saad 2:104-105. Tabari 8:93; 9:119.)

22. Seven clashes with the Ghatafan tribe. In August 627 Muhammad’s camels (some
of which had been stolen from the Ghatafan) were grazing in Ghatafan territory. The
Ghatafan raided the pasture and stole the camels, murdering the Muslim herdsman in the
skirmish. The Muslims defended themselves by hunting down the raiders and taking back
their camels.

In September Muhammad sent ten men to raid a different clan of the Ghatafan. However,
the Ghatafan defended themselves and the Muslims lost the battle. Muhammad sent two
more raiding parties to attack the same clan; but the Ghatafan fled, leaving nothing for
the Muslims to do except steal their camels and goats. Muhammad then heard that the
Ghatafan were trying to steal some camels from Medina. Actually we have only
Muhammad’s word that this was what they were doing; since there was a drought in
Ghatafan territory but grass in Medina, and since the “raiders” brought a cumbersome
herd of their animals with them, it is more likely that they were only trying to steal some
grass. The Muslims intercepted the raid and tried to fight; the Ghatafan once again
escaped to the mountains, and the Muslims stole their animals.

In November a third clan of the Ghatafan spotted a party of Muslims on a trading-journey

to Syria. They attacked and robbed them, killing a few. In January 628 Muhammad sent
Zayd to punish them. Zayd’s men ambushed and defeated the clan. Among their captives
was the lady-chief, Umm Qirfa, whom they tied to two camels and tore in half. (Ibn Ishaq
486-490, 660, 664-665. Ibn Hisham #732-736. Waqidi 264-273, 277-278. Ibn Saad 2:99-
106, 108-109, 111-112. Bukhari 4:52:278; 5:59:507. Muslim 19:4345, 4449. Ibn Maja
4:24:2840. Tabari 8:41, 43-57, 93-97; Tabari 9:119. Ibn Hajar, Bulugh 11:1307.)

23. Sulaym tribe. Meanwhile, in September, Zayd attacked the Sulaym. This was
probably a vengeance-strike because the Sulaym had fought in the Battle of the Ditch.
There was no present danger from the Sulaym as Zayd’s men had to hunt the tribe down
in their camp. They brought human and animal captives back to Medina. (Ibn Ishaq 662.
Ibn Saad 2:106-107. Tabari 8:93; 9:120.)

24. Quraysh tribe. In October Zayd robbed another Quraysh caravan. He brought a hoard
of silver and several prisoners back to Medina. (Ibn Ishaq 316-317. Waqidi 271-272. Ibn
Saad 2:107. Tabari 8:93-94.)

25. Judham tribe. In November a prominent Muslim was robbed by two Judham men.
Some men from another tribe came to his rescue and restored his possessions.
Muhammad nevertheless sent 500 men to punish the whole Judham tribe at Hisma. They
killed the two robbers and some other men and stole 100 women and children, 1,000
camels and 5,000 goats. The elders of the Judham tribe managed to persuade Muhammad
that they had converted to Islam and that they did not require blood-money for the dead
men. Thereupon Muhammad returned everything to them, including “women who were
under the thighs of men”. Muhammad was always willing to make peace with people who
agreed to become Muslims. (Ibn Ishaq 662-664. Ibn Hisham #902-904. Waqidi 273-275.
Ibn Saad 2:108-109. Tabari 8:94; 9:98-103, 120.)

26. Kalb tribe. In December 627 Muhammad sent 700 men back to Dumat al-Jandal.
That city in the far north had never tried to retaliate for his attack the previous year,
which must have confirmed his impression that they were an easy target. His commander
spent three days inviting the Kalb tribe to convert to Islam. When they refused, the
Muslims attacked. The Kalb then surrendered, and their chief was among those who
became Muslims. The rest were allowed to remain Christian if they paid jizya. The army-
commander married the chief’s daughter. (Ibn Ishaq 672. Ibn Hisham #912. Waqidi 275-
276. Ibn Saad 2:110. Tabari 8:95; 9:123.)

27. Hawazin tribes. At the same time, Muhammad heard that a Hawazin clan were
plotting with the Nadir tribe. There is some evidence that the rumour was true. Obviously
Muhammad had no sympathy with the viewpoint that the Nadir were justified in trying
to reclaim their stolen property in Medina; he defended his new possessions against all
threats. He sent Ali with a hundred men to attack the Hawazin at their wells near Fadak.
The Hawazin fled before the Muslims had a chance to fight them properly, and Ali stole
500 camels and 2,000 goats. Now Muhammad added a new enemy to his list of tribes to
punish. (Ibn Ishaq 661. Waqidi 276-277. Ibn Saad 2:110-111. Tabari 8:95; 9:119.)

28. Mustaliq tribe. Still at the same time, Muhammad claimed that the Mustaliq tribe
was negotiating with others to attack Medina together. He was not very worried about
this situation; although he had 2,200 warriors idle in Medina, he only took 700 of them
on the raid to hunt down the plot. After three weeks of searching the desert (it should
have taken only four days to reach the Mustaliq headquarters), he finally located the tribe
at Muraysi Wells, ambushed them and defeated them. He stole 2,000 camels, 5,000 sheep
and 200 human captives, whom he set for ransom (except the most beautiful girl, whom
he kept for himself). No evidence of the Mustaliq tribe’s alleged allies was ever found. It
is more likely that Muhammad was punishing them for fighting in the Battle of the Ditch
because he needed to keep his spare warriors busy. (Ibn Ishaq 490-493, 660. Malik 29:95.
Ibn Hisham #737-739. Waqidi 198-202. Ibn Saad 2:77-80. Bukhari 3:46:717-718; 5:59:459;
9:93:506. Muslim 4:1101; 8:3371; 19:4292. Abu Dawud 11:2167; 14:2627; 30:3920. Tabari
8:41, 51-57.)

Analysis

In three of these battles, the Muslims were defending themselves against a Ghatafan
attack. One battle, Ali’s raid on the Hawazin, was a pre-emptive strike against a tribe that
might have attacked him in the future. Eleven of the raids, plus the blockade of the
Quraysh, can be directly attributed to revenge. One battle, the conquest of Dumat al-
Jandal, was unprovoked aggression.

The Ghatafan did not attack the Muslims for no reason. The conflict between them had
now continued for three years. Do you remember who had originally started the fight?

When it came to revenge, Muhammad targeted tribes who had fought him at the Battle of
the Ditch and offended him in other ways. Occasionally these tribes opposed Muhammad
because he had harmed their allies (the Hawazin and the Mustaliq); but more often they
opposed him because he had already attacked them directly. Nobody ever set out to start
a fight with Muhammad. In every single case where he took revenge, it was Muhammad
who had first initiated the hostilities and then punished those who dared to retaliate.

In the case of the Judham, Muhammad punished the whole tribe for the crime of two
bandits, even though they were lone operators who did not act in the tribe’s name. It did
not occur to him to ask politely for compensation, let alone (since the stolen goods had
already been recovered) to ignore the offence. On the contrary, he established the
principle that the only way to avoid punishment from Medina was to convert to Islam.

Conclusion

Muhammad’s wars in this brief period were numerous and usually part of ongoing
conflicts. In each case, he was the one who had started the conflict. However, he was
always willing to add new enemies to his list of tribes to be punished. He subjugated the
harmless Kalb tribe in Dumat al-Jandal simply because he could.

What the reader needs to remember for Part IV is that Muhammad was now controlling
the Meccan food supply. Ten years earlier, the Quraysh had tried to starve out
Muhammad’s clan. Now the tables were turned. The Quraysh were hungry.

Part 4: from Muraysi to Mulawwa

Did Muhammad fight only in self-defence or sometimes for other reasons? We are
addressing this question by examining all of Muhammad’s wars.

29. The assassination of two Nadir chiefs. One of the inciters and organisers of the
Battle of the Ditch had been Abu Rafi, the Nadir-born chief of Khaybar. In February 628
Muhammad sent five men to assassinate him. The assassins knocked on Abu Rafi’s door
by night, claiming they had a gift for him, and stabbed him to death on his bed.

A few weeks later Muhammad heard rumours that the new chief of Khaybar, Yusayr, was
plotting with the Ghatafan to invade Medina. An alternative rumour was that an army of
Jews was already on the march. Although the spies could not tell a consistent story,
Muhammad sent thirty Muslims to Khaybar to kill Yusayr (and they did not pass any
Jewish army on the road). They lured thirty Jews to accompany them to Medina for “treaty
negotiations”. Once they were out in the desert, each Muslim killed a Jew (one man
escaped) and Yusayr, although valiantly defending himself with a tree-branch, died with
the rest. (Ibn Ishaq 482-484, 665-666. Ibn Hisham #729, 905. Waqidi 192-193, 278-279. Ibn
Saad 2:112-115. Bukhari 4:52:264-265; 5:59:369-372. Tabari 7:99-105; 9:120-121.)

30. Quraysh tribe. In March 628 Muhammad took 1,400 men to Mecca. Although they
were dressed as pilgrims, they were carrying weapons. On the journey, Muhammad called
to every Bedouin tribe that they passed to join the expedition, but only about a hundred
men fell in line; the rest said they did not want to fight the Quraysh.

When the news of the Muslim advance spread, the Quraysh, still hungry from the famine
that Muhammad had caused, assumed the worst and called up their usual allies (Bakr,
Thaqif, al-Harith, Hun). An army of 4,000 blocked Muhammad’s pathway into Mecca, so
he retreated to the nearby Hudaybiya Valley to negotiate. Apparently it did not occur to
the Muslims that the Quraysh could easily ambush and destroy them there; and nor did
the Quraysh attempt it.

Instead, they negotiated a ten-year cease-fire; Muhammad was not allowed to attack
either the Quraysh or their Bakr allies, who in return promised peace to the Muslims and
their Khuza’a allies. Muhammad was forced to agree that no more Meccans would be
allowed to defect to Medina but that Medinans might defect freely to Mecca. He went
home humiliated.

Because Muhammad’s plans backfired, it is difficult to assess what his original intentions
had been. Since he left half his army in Medina, he probably did not intend to fight the
Meccans; it is more likely that he wanted to intimidate them by showing off how many of
the Bedouin obeyed him. It was not as many as he had hoped. (Quran 48:1-29. Malik 13:4;
20:56, 99-100; 23:9. Ibn Ishaq 499-507, 660. Ibn Hisham #746-754. Waqidi 281-307. Ibn
Saad 2:117-131. Bukhari 1:12:807; 2:17:148; 2:26:752; 3:27:6-8; 3:28:33, 40, 42, 44;
3:29:47-48; 3:49:862-864; 3:50:874, 891; 4:52:205, 406; 4:56:776-777; 5:57:48; 5:59:395,
468-475, 477-478, 487-490, 495-497, 500, 503-504, 554, 556, 571; 6:60:358, 364, 367;
7:71:604; 9:89:313. Muslim 1:132; 7:2710, 2713, 2732, 2736-2737, 2839, 2879, 3024, 3027;
19:4401-4402, 4405-4406, 4409, 4450; 20:4576, 4578-4581, 4583, 4588, 4590. Tabari 8:67-
90.)

31. Quraysh tribe. The armistice was almost immediately broken by Abu Basir, a
Meccan who ran away to Medina. Muhammad kept his promise by sending him back to
Mecca; but on the journey, Abu Basir murdered his guard and escaped to the coast.
Meanwhile, the Quraysh implored Muhammad to end the famine; he gave the order to his
friend Thumama, and the blockade was stopped. Abu Basir was soon joined by dozens of
disaffected men, and they formed a gang. These highwaymen attacked the Quraysh
merchants, “killing everyone they could get hold of and cutting to pieces every caravan.”
Muhammad never said a word to discourage them. Then the Quraysh begged Muhammad
to cancel that part of the armistice and to take Abu Basir’s gang into Medina after all.
Muhammad ordered the highwaymen to stop, and they obeyed him immediately. (Quran
48:24-26. Ibn Ishaq 507-508. Ibn Hisham #755-756, 915. Waqidi 307-310. Bukhari
3:50:891; 5:59:496; 6:60:297. Abu Dawud 14:2759. Tabari 8:90-91. See also Kister (1981)
http://www.kister.huji.ac.il/content/o-god-tighten-thy-grip-muḍar-some-socio-economic-
and-religious-aspects-early-ḥadīth.)

32. Nadir tribe & Yemenite Jews. In June 628 Muhammad took an army of 1,400 to
attack the city of Khaybar. There was no specific pretext, but it was obvious that sooner
or later the Nadir tribe would try to reclaim their stolen property in Medina, and their
new friends in Khaybar had swelled their army to 4,000. Since Muhammad was not
interested in offering restitution and making friends with the Jews, it was a matter of his
own survival to strike pre-emptively. He besieged Khaybar for nearly a month,
catapulting their castles or blocking their water-supplies as necessary, until they were
forced to surrender. The Muslims looted their dwellings, helping themselves to all the
money, weapons, vessels, cloth and animals on which they could lay hands, and took some
civilian prisoners. The Jews had to pay a tribute of half their date-harvests to Medina.
(Malik 2:20; 9:27; 21:25, 48; 28:41; 33:1-2. Ibn Ishaq 510-526, 660. Ibn Hisham #759-777.
Waqidi 311-355. Ibn Saad 2:131-146. Baladhuri 1:42-49. Bukhari 1:4:214; 1:8:367;
1:11:584; 1:12:812; 1:65:365; 2:14:68; 3:34:437; 3:36:485; 3:39:521-522, 524, 527, 531;
3:43:657; 3:44:678; 3:50:881, 890; 4:52:80, 143, 192-193, 195, 219, 224, 234, 253; 4:53:364,
380-381, 383, 394; 4:56:840; 5:57:52; 5:59:508-510, 512, 515-517, 520-525, 527-528, 530-
531, 533, 535-538, 540-541, 544, 547-548, 550-551, 571; 7:62:22, 50, 89; 7:65:296, 302, 336;
7:67:405, 416, 429-430, 432-433; 7:71:669; 8:73:169; 8:75:343, 374; 8:77:603; 8:78:698;
9:83:29; 9:86:91. Muslim 1:209-210; 8:3263, 3265-3267, 3325, 3328-3329; 10:3758-3763,
3863-3864; 19:4377, 4437-4438, 4440-4441, 4450; 21:4763, 4767-4769, 4771, 4774-4775,
4777-4780; 31:5915, 5917-5919. Abu Dawud 14:2532, 2696, 2698, 2701, 2705, 2717-2719,
2724; 19:2974, 2989, 2992, 3000-3004, 3006-3009, 3012-3013; 22:3347, 3401-3403, 3405,
3407; 27:3779-3780, 3796, 3799, 3802; 40:4496-4497. Nasa’i 1:6:548; 3:21:1961;
4:25:3152; 4:26:3367-3369, 3382-3384; 4:28:3623; 4:29:3630; 4:35:3858, 3961-3962;
5:42:4332, 4334, 4339-4341, 4343, 4345-4346, 4348, 4353; 5:43:4440. Tirmidhi 2:6:1121;
3:13:1383; 3:16:1478; 3:19:1550, 1556-1557, 1559; 3:23:1794-1795; 5:46:3724. Ibn Maja
1:1:492; 3:8:1820; 3:9:1961; 3:16:2467-2469; 4:24:2854, 2881, 2964; 4:27:3191-3192,
3195. Tabari 8:90-91.)

33. All remaining Jews in Arabia. On the way home from Khaybar, Muhammad visited
Wadi’l-Qura and invited the Jews there to convert to Islam. When they refused, he
besieged the town until he had destroyed it and plundered its chattels. The defeated Jews
had to accept a Muslim governor and to pledge half their produce as a tax to Medina in
exchange for their lives. Muhammad had had no previous dealings with Wadi’l-Qura, and
it was no kind of threat to him; he attacked it simply because it was a Jewish community
and he wanted to control all the Jews. When Fadak and Tayma, the last two Jewish towns
in the West, heard about Muhammad’s conquest of Khaybar and Wadi’l-Qura, they
appeased Muhammad by offering to pay him a similar tax. Muhammad accepted this
without bothering to fight them. (Malik 21:25; 45:18. Ibn Ishaq 515-516, 523. Waqidi 347-
350. Baladhuri 1:50-59. Abu Dawud 14:2705. Nasa’i 4:35:3858. Tabari 8:124.)

34. Hawazin. In December Muhammad sent Umar to Turaba raid the Hawazin tribe. Not
much is known about this expedition; no provocation is mentioned, but the Hawazin were
still on Muhammad’s hit-list for being allies of the Jews. (Ibn Ishaq 660. Waqidi 355. Ibn
Saad 2:146. Tabari 8:131; 9:119.)

35. Two attacks on the Amir tribe. At the same time, Abu Bakr went to central Arabia
to attack the Amir tribe. The following July Muhammad sent another squad to attack the
Amir again. Not much is known about these two battles either; the accounts are confusing.
Nowhere is there any mention of Amir aggression, so it must have been a continuation of
their previous punishment. (Waqidi 355, 371. Ibn Saad 2:147, 157. Tabari 8:131.)

36. Four clashes with the Ghatafan tribe. In December Muhammad sent thirty raiders
to attack another Ghatafan clan, with which he had not previously been in conflict. The
Muslims lost the battle, so in January Muhammad sent more raiders to attack the same
clan. In February he heard that the Ghatafan chief was gathering an army near Khaybar
to attack Medina, and this time the rumour was true. Muhammad’s army managed to
locate the Ghatafan forces first; they routed them and stole their animals. In June
Muhammad sent a large raid that surprised a different Ghatafan clan and stole their
animals. (Ibn Ishaq 662, 667. Ibn Hisham #908. Waqidi 355-360. Ibn Saad 2:147-149, 156-
157. Tabari 8:132-133; 9:119-120, 122-123.)

37. Sulaym tribe. Meanwhile, in April 629, Muhammad launched another attack on the
Sulaym tribe. Again, there was no new provocation; it was part of the ongoing punishment
of this tribe. The Sulaym spies heard of their advance and the tribe was able to gather
reinforcements. With yells of, “We don’t want your Islam!” the Sulaym drove off and
defeated the Muslims. (Ibn Ishaq 661. Waqidi 365. Ibn Saad 2:153. Tabari 8:138; 9:119.)

38. Bakr tribe (Mulawwa). In June Muhammad sent a small raid to attack the Mulawwa
family at Qudayd. The Muslims ambushed them after they had settled for the night, killed
some of the men and stole whatever animals they could herd away. It was an unprovoked
attack on a tiny clan a long way from Medina. You might wonder why Muhammad even
bothered, unless you noticed that the Mulawwa were a section of the Layth clan of the
Bakr tribe. Under the conditions of the Hudaybiya cease-fire, Muhammad had promised
never to attack the Bakr. His basic motive seems to have been to break the cease-fire so
that he would be free to attack Mecca again. (Ibn Ishaq 660-661. Ibn Hisham #901. Waqidi
369-370. Ibn Saad 2:154-156. Tabari 8:139-142; 9:119.)

Analysis

In only one of these battles were Muhammad’s actions directly defensive: the Ghatafan
tribe struck first, and he responded. His three assaults against Khaybar were pre-
emptive; it was a city that he had every reason to fear.

In nine of the attacks, Muhammad was clearly the aggressor, although all the assaults
were against tribes with whom he had a history of ongoing warfare. He attacked the
Quraysh twice, the Hawazin once, the Amir twice, the Ghatafan three times and the
Sulaym once.

He also made unprovoked attacks on new enemies: the Jews at Wadi’l-Qura and the Bakr.
Neither group presented any threat to him; he disregarded their rights because attacking
the Jews was a step toward his controlling all the Jews in Arabia and attacking the Bakr
helped him break an irksome treaty.

Conclusion

There is no evidence that anyone in Arabia was a threat to Muhammad before he

threatened first. He created enemies at his convenience, then harassed and attacked them
until they were weakened. His reward for these aggressive policies was that he became
more and more powerful in Arabia.

Part 5: from Mulawwa to Ta’if

Did Muhammad fight only in self-defence or sometimes for other reasons? We are
addressing this question by examining all of Muhammad’s wars.

One issue that has arisen from this survey is the protest that the sources are biased. This
is unfortunately true. With the exception of a brief reference to the modern historian
Kister, I have only used sources that were written by a Muslims. They believed that
Muhammad was always right, and their histories were written to glorify him. His
enemies’ point of view barely exists; the few facts reported from polytheists, Jews or
Christians have been filtered by Muslim sub-narrators. This means that Muhammad’s
behaviour may have been worse than the history books indicate, while his enemies’
behaviour may have been better. However, it is impossible for us to know exactly which
stories were exaggerated; it’s unlikely that all of them were. Therefore, despite the bias,
we have no choice but to run with the records that exist. The real Muhammad may or may
not have been worse than they portray; it’s highly unlikely that he was better.

Here in Part 5 we will examine the events surrounding the conquest of Mecca from June
629 to March 630, a period that also covers the beginning of the hostilities against the
northern tribes.

39. Ghatafan and Amir tribes. In June 629 Muhammad attacked the Ghatafan again, and
in July he attacked the Amir. No specific provocation from either tribe is recorded;
probably Muhammad was just continuing the general hostilities. (Waqidi 371. Ibn Saad
2:156-157. Tabari 8:143.)

40. Ghassan tribes (on the Syrian border). In July Muhammad sent a small raid to
attack one of the Ghassan tribes. They were Bedouins in northern Arabia with whom he
had had no previous dealings. The Ghassanites defended themselves and the Muslims
were defeated. (Ibn Ishaq 667. Waqidi 370. Ibn Saad 2:158. Tabari 8:143; 9:122.)

41. Ghassan tribes & the Roman Empire (Battle of Muta). Soon afterwards the
Ghassanites captured a man who was couriering a letter from Muhammad to the
Governor of Iraq. We are not told what was in the letter; since Muhammad was not
important enough to be on diplomatic terms with a Roman governor, it was probably one
of the convert-or-die letters that he had been sending to all the neighbouring royalty. The
Ghassanites were so annoyed by this letter to their ally, written by a man who had already
attacked them directly, that when the messenger refused to renounce Islam, they killed
him.

This crime terrified the Muslims; Muhammad convinced them that the Ghassan tribes
intended to invade Medina. Yet after waiting for several weeks for the Ghassan army to
arrive, Muhammad realised that this war was never going to happen. In September he
sent his own army of 3,000 men toward Syria.

When the Ghassan heard of their march, they appealed to their allies in Syria, and the
Roman Emperor sent an army of tens of thousands to deal with the nuisance. The Muslims
met the Romans at Muta and suffered a humiliating defeat. Now Muhammad added the
Roman Empire to his list of enemies. (Ibn Ishaq 532-540, 666-667. Ibn Hisham #784-791.
Waqidi 372-378. Ibn Saad 2:158-162. Bukhari 3:43:648; 5:57:14; 5:59:560, 564-565, 644;
6:60:435; 7:62:119; 7:72:734. Muslim 4:2034; 9:3508; 19:4343; 31:5876. Abu Dawud 1:334;
14:2567, 2713; 20:3126. Nasa’i 1:1:144; 3:21:1848, 1879. Tirmidhi 2:5:998; 5:44:3318;
5:46:3763, 3885. Ibn Maja 1:5:1396. Tabari 8:137, 152-160; 9:122.)

42. Ghassan tribes (Dhat al-Salasil on the Syrian border). In October Muhammad
heard a rumour that the Ghassan tribes wanted to continue the war and invade Medina.
He sent an army of 500 northwards. They called the tribes that they passed to join the
fight, though without much success. Although they did find a gathering of the Ghassanites,
these people fled and dispersed as soon as the Muslims placed themselves for the attack.
It does not sound as if the tribes had been serious about marching to confront all 3,000
Muslims at Medina; more likely, they had gathered for defensive purposes. (Ibn Ishaq 668-
669. Waqidi 378-381. Ibn Saad 2:162-163. Bukhari 5:57:14; 5:59:644. Muslim 4:2034;
31:5876. Abu Dawud 1:334; 20:3126. Nasa’i 1:1:144. Tirmidhi 5:46:3885. Ibn Maja
1:5:1396. Tabari 8:146-147; 9:123.)

43. Juhayna tribe (the Fish Raid). In November Muhammad sent an expedition of 300
Muslims to attack the Juhayna, another of the northern tribes. They were not Ghassan but
they may have allied with the Ghassan in the Battle of Muta. The Muslims failed to locate
the Bedouin and returned home without having fought. (Ibn Ishaq 673. Waqidi 381-382.
Ibn Saad 2:163. Bukhari 9:83:11. Muslim 1:176-177; 21:4758, 4762. Nasa’i 5:42:4357, 4359.
Tabari 8:147-149; 9:123.)
44. Ghatafan and Hawazin tribes. In December a “numerous” Hawazin clan camped
uncomfortably close to Medina. Muhammad claimed they were “plotting” against him and
had the chief assassinated. The plot, if it existed, had probably been a vengeance cattle-
raid rather than a full-scale invasion, for the clan retreated at the death of their chief.
Muhammad also raided the Ghatafan twice more. The first time he ordered a surprise
attack, which was very successful. The army came home with 200 camels, 1,000 goats and
“many” slaves. The second time was only a decoy-raid so that nobody would know that
his real target was Mecca; but the Muslims killed a man anyway. (Ibn Ishaq 669-672. Ibn
Hisham #909-911. Waqidi 382-384, 392-393. Ibn Saad 2:163-165. Tabari 8:149-152;
9:123.)

45. Quraysh & Bakr tribes (the Conquest of Mecca). For several months after
Muhammad broke the Armistice of Hudaybiya, the Quraysh tried to ignore the situation
and carry on. But their low-status allies, the Bakr, raided the Muslims’ allies, the Khuza’a,
and killed twenty men. Muhammad immediately declared that the Meccans had broken
the armistice and that the absence of a cease-fire treaty entitled him to attack them.

He marched into Mecca with an army of 10,000. The Bakr tribe resisted him at the north-
eastern gate, but Muhammad’s cavalry killed 28 of them and forced their way through.
Muhammad branch of the army entered from the north-west, killing at least 26 men
before Abu Sufyan could push through the crowd with his formal surrender.

Muhammad ordered the Quraysh to hand over their weapons and convert to Islam, and
everyone who met these two conditions was graciously allowed to walk free (except for
five personal enemies who were killed at his command anyway). Then he lit a bonfire and
ceremonially burned every idol in the Kaaba. (Ibn Ishaq 540-561, 660. Ibn Rashid 48. Malik
28:44, 46. Ibn Hisham #792-813. Waqidi 384-428. Ibn Saad 2:165-180. Baladhuri 1:60-76.
Bukhari 1:3:112; 1:8:353; 2:26:648-651, 657; 3:29:58, 60, 72; 4:52:42, 79, 231, 280, 311-
312; 4:53:412; 5:59:577-579, 582-583, 585-586, 589, 595, 598, 601, 603, 683; 6:60:244, 359;
6:61:553; 7:72:699; 9:83:19; 9:93:631. Bukhari, Mufrad 34:826. Muslim 4:1737; 7:3133,
3141; 19:4395-4396, 4399; 20:4595, 4597, 4599. Abu Dawud 8:1462; 10:1863, 1866, 1873,
2012; 14:2474, 2757; 19:3015-3017; 33:4065, 4144; 34:2679; 39:4345-4346; 40:4531,
4571. Nasa’i 2:11:1008; 3:19:1590; 3:24:2871-2872, 2877-2879; 5:37:4072, 4074;
5:39:4165, 4173-4175; 5:45:4796; 6:48:5346-5347. Tirmidhi 2:4:809; 3:19:1611;
3:21:1690, 1693-1694; 3:22:1735; 5:44:3129, 3138, 3270. Ibn Maja 1:5:1076; 3:11:2116;
4:23:2736; 4:24:2805, 2817; 4:25:2947, 3063, 3109; 4:32:3586. Tabari 8:160-187.)

46. Sulaym & Quraysh, Mustaliq, Hudhayl and Daws. Muhammad sent out four
squads to the neighbouring provinces to destroy the temples of the gods Al-Uzza,
Manat, Suwa and Dhu’l-Kaffayn. The idolators had not given any specific provocation; the
fact of their idols existing too close to Mecca was provocation enough. The Muslims razed
the buildings, smashed the idols, stole the treasures and sliced the priestess of Al-Uzza
into two halves. (Ibn Ishaq 177, 565. Ibn Hisham #72-73. Waqidi 428-429, 452-453. Ibn
Saad 2:180-182, 194-195. Tabari 8:187-188.)

47. Kinana tribes (Jadhima clan). Muhammad sent Khalid to invite the Jadhima clan to
Islam but not to fight them unless they refused. As soon as the Jadhima saw Khalid, they
declared that they were already Muslims. But Khalid had a hidden agenda, for long ago
the Jadhima had murdered his uncle; after persuading them to hand over their weapons,
he killed more than twenty of them before his lieutenants persuaded him to stop. This
crime was not Muhammad’s fault, and he sent blood-money to pay for it. Nevertheless, he
would have endorsed the killings if the Jadhima had not converted to Islam, so the
outcome made no moral difference in his original intention. (Ibn Ishaq 561-565. Ibn
Hisham #814-817. Waqidi 430-435. Ibn Saad 2:182-185. Bukhari 5:59:628; 9:89:299.
Tabari 8:188-192.)

48. Hawazin tribe (Hunayn). Watching as Muhammad destroyed the idols of all their
neighbours, the Hawazin tribe assumed that Muhammad would attack them next, so they
decided on a pre-emptive strike. Muhammad heard of it, which meant that he marched
out to defend himself. The Hawazin ambushed the Muslims in Hunayn Valley. The
Muslims quickly rallied and routed the Hawazin. The Muslims managed to capture all
their women, children, animals and money, so they were able to bargain with the men of
Hawazin to convert to Islam in exchange for receiving their families back. (Ibn Ishaq 566-
587, 660. Malik 20:18; 21:18-20, 22-23; 28:44. Ibn Hisham #819-838. Waqidi 435-452. Ibn
Saad 2:185-190. Baladhuri 1:85. Bukhari 3:27:8; 3:34:313; 3:46:716; 3:47:778; 4:52:75,
116, 126, 181, 279; 4:53:360, 370, 372, 376, 378; 5:58:221; 5:59:575, 581, 604-608, 610-612,
619, 622, 624-626; 9:89:282. Muslim 1:205; 5:2303, 2308-2309, 2311, 2313-2314, 2316;
19:4340, 4385, 4388-4390, 4392, 4453; 30:5730; 31:6092. Abu Dawud 3:1052; 11:2150,
2153; 14:2495, 2652, 2711-2712; 20:3188; 23:3555-3556; 42:5214. Nasa’i 1:7:633-634;
1:10:855; 5:38:4141, 4143. Tirmidhi 2:2:666; 3:21:1689; 4:7:2180. Tirmidhi, Shama’il
36:234. Ibn Maja 3:15:2424; 4:24:2837, 2850. Tabari 9:1-20, 26-31.)

49. Thaqif tribe (Conquest of Ta’if). Some of the Thaqif tribe (residents of Ta’if) had
helped with the ambush at Hunayn, so Muhammad obviously had to punish Ta’if next. His
army besieged the walled city for three weeks, bitterly resenting any attempt from the
citizens to fight back, but they could not breach its walls and they had to give up.
Muhammad decided to return to Medina. He ordered his new friends, the Hawazin, to
continue the war against Ta’if on his behalf. For over nine months, the Hawazin raided
the Thaqif animals and attacked every Thaqifite who emerged from the walls of Ta’if. In
the end the harassment became so intolerable that the Thaqif tribe converted to Islam.
(Ibn Ishaq 587-594, 614-617, 660. Malik 37:5. Ibn Hisham #839-843, 866-868. Waqidi 452-
460, 467-468. Ibn Saad 2:195-198. Baladhuri 1:85-90. Bukhari 5:58:122; 5:59:613, 616, 621,
626; 7:62:162; 7:72:775; 8:73:109; 9:93:572. Muslim 5:2308-2309; 19:4393; 26:5415. Abu
Dawud 30:3954. Nasa’i 3:21:2005. Ibn Maja 3:9:1902; 3:20:2614. Tabari 9:20-26.)

Analysis

Of the eighteen conflicts fought by Muhammad in this period, only the two involving the
Hawazin tribes were defensive. From the point of view of the Hawazin, of course, the
ambush at Hunayn was a pre-emptive strike; and if their “plot against Medina” was real,
it was in revenge for Muhammad’s previous strike against the Hawazin. Do you
remember how the fight with the Hawazin tribes originally started?

Eleven of the wars might be considered as “revenge” strikes because they continued
conflicts in which the other tribe had at least once attacked Muhammad. The largest one
continued his conflict with the Quraysh; four were against the Ghatafan; three against the
northern tribes; one against the Amir; one against the Hudhayl; and one long campaign
against this new enemies, the Thaqif. It is notable that some of those past attacks were
quite a long time in the past, yet Muhammad was dealing out new punishments without
awaiting any new offences (Amir, Ghatafan, Hudhayl, Quraysh). In every case, the hostile
relationship had begun with Muhammad striking the first blow.

He also made new enemies among the northern tribes by making an unprovoked attack
and then continuing the hostilities. His only motive was a hope he might one day conquer
them. He made three attacks against the idols of tribes that were no threat to him,
including the murder of a priestess: the Quraysh and the Mustaliq, whom he had already
conquered; and the Daws, who were friendly to him. (The fourth idol-attack was the one
that continued his old conflict with the Hudhayl, as mentioned above.) Finally, he attacked
the Jadhima, who were no threat to him and who very clearly wanted to avoid trouble.

Conclusion

The conquest of Mecca transformed Muhammad into a powerful chief whom nobody
wanted to attack. But this security did not make him more peaceable. He used his
powerful position to be more aggressive than ever.

Part 6: from Ta’if to Palestine

We are finally reaching the end of our analysis of Muhammad’s motives for fighting his
many wars.

50. Mustaliq and Tamim tribes (the adventures of the tax-collectors). Having
conquered Mecca, Muhammad required taxes from all his new dominions. When he heard
that the Mustaliq tribe was marshalled to attack the tax-collectors, he intended to send a
punishment raid. Fortunately the Mustaliq messenger arrived before the army could set
out and was able to convince Muhammad that it was all a misunderstanding and that the
taxes were ready to be paid. A Christian clan of Tamim assumed that the tax-collectors
were stealing from their allies, the newly-Muslim Khuza’a, and fought them off.
Muhammad sent a punishment raid to this clan and captured 52 prisoners. The Tamim
were forced to ransom their captives and convert to Islam. (Ibn Ishaq 493, 628-631, 667.
Ibn Hisham #878. Waqidi 477-481. Ibn Saad 2:198-200. Bukhari 5:59:652. Tabari 9:67-73,
79, 122.)

51. Khathaam tribe. Muhammad sent a small squad to Yemen to raid the Khathaam
tribe, with whom he had had no previous dealings. The Muslims ambushed the tribe by
night, killed whomever they could reach, and stole women, camels and goats. (Ibn Ishaq
642. Waqidi 481. Ibn Saad 2:200-201. Tabari 9:88-89.)

52. Amir tribe. Muhammad sent his army to the Qurata clan, who had not retaliated since
Muhammad’s previous attempt to intimidate them. The army invited them to convert to
Islam, and when they refused, the Muslims attacked and defeated them. This was the raid
in which one of the Muslims scrupulously avoided killing his own father but stood guard
over him until another warrior arrived to finish the old man off. (Waqidi 481-482. Ibn
Saad 2:201.)

52. Abyssinia. Boats from Ethiopia approached the Meccan coast, so Muhammad sent
300 men to investigate. When the Muslims reached an island in the Red Sea, the
Abyssinian boats turned back. Since Muhammad had always been on friendly terms with
Abyssinia, there is no reason to believe that the boats were approaching with hostile
intention. While he might have been striking pre-emptively, it’s more likely that he seized
on the incident as an excuse to keep his men busy by sending them on the attack. (Ibn
Ishaq 677. Waqidi 482. Ibn Saad 2:201-202.)

53. Tayy tribe. In July 630 Ali went to the Tayy tribe to destroy their idol Fuls.
Muhammad had had no previous dealings with this tribe and it was no threat to him. He
presumably attacked because he wanted to destroy the cult of Fuls. Ali’s army rounded
up several prisoners and brought them back to Medina. Those who refused to convert to
Islam were beheaded. (Ibn Ishaq 637-639. Ibn Hisham #890. Waqidi 482-485. Ibn Saad
2:202-203. Tabari 9:62-67.)

54. Northern tribes. At the same time Muhammad sent another squad to fight two of the
northern tribes, the Udhra and the Balli. It is not known who won the battle or even
whether the two sides met up. These tribes were most likely being punished for their part
in the Battle of Muta. (Ibn Saad 2:203.)

55. Ghassan & Kinda tribes & the Roman Empire (Tabuk). In November 630
Muhammad heard that the Roman Emperor and his allies in the northern tribes of Arabia
had mustered a huge army to invade Arabia, presumably to punish the Muslims for the
Battle of Muta. Muhammad called together all his minions and raised a fighting force of
30,000, who marched across the desert to prevent the invasion. When they reached
Tabuk, however, they found that there was no Roman army. The rumour had been false;
the dreaded invasion had been imaginary. Muhammad sent a squad to attack nearby
Dumat al-Jandal, and its remaining tribe, the Kinda, was forced to submit and pay jizya.
(Quran 9:38-129. Ibn Ishaq 602-610, 660. Ibn Hisham #858-865. Waqidi 485-527. Ibn Saad
2:203-208. Baladhuri 1:92-96. Muslim 30:5663. Tabari 9:47-62.)

56. Dhu’l-Khalasa. A chief from the Yemenite border converted to Islam, so Muhammad
sent him to destroy his neighbourhood temple of Dhu’l-Khalasa. The polytheists resisted
this blasphemy; 300 of the defending warriors and all of the priests were killed before
the Muslims had the chance to set the temple on fire. (Ibn Hisham #73. Bukhari 5:59:643.
Tabari 9:123.)

57. Not a war. In March 631 Muhammad produced his final significant prophecy, which
is now Q9:1-37. This included the Verse of the Sword (“Slay the infidel wherever you find
them…”) and the Verse of Jizya (“Fight the People of the Book until they pay with willing
submission …”). It is worth remarking that there was no war in Arabia at that time. Almost
every tribe had submitted to Muhammad, whether voluntarily or after losing a war.
Nobody was threatening any part of Muhammad’s dominion. The prophecy banned non-
Muslims from entering Mecca for any purpose and served as advance notice of
Muhammad’s future campaigns, for he intended to invade (Jewish) Yemen and
(Christian) Syria. (Quran 9:1-37. Ibn Ishaq 617-624. Ibn Hisham #869-871. Waqidi 527-
528. Ibn Saad 2:208-209. Bukhari 6:60:178-180. Tabari 9:77-79.)

58. The Conquest of Yemen. In summer 631 Muhammad sent Khalid to Yemen to preach
Islam and to kill anyone who took longer than three days to convert. Khalid reported that
the first few tribes surrendered peacefully. A chief from another tribe declared voluntary
submission, and Muhammad commissioned him to convert his neighbours, which he
achieved by siege and pitched battle. The remaining tribes proved more resistant, so in
winter Muhammad sent Ali to replace Khalid. It was actually Ali’s second excursion to
Yemen, although not much is known about his first. Ali disobeyed orders and started
fights. He was never rebuked for it, for he succeeded in the primary goal of conquering
Yemen. Most of Yemen had surrendered to Islam by March 632. (Ibn Ishaq 645-646, 660,
678. Ibn Hisham #916. Waqidi 528-532. Ibn Saad 2:209-210. Baladhuri 1:91, 98-101, 106-
115. Bukhari 2:24:478, 537, 573; 2:26:629-630; 3:27:13; 4:52:275; 5:59:630-632, 634, 636,
639-640; 8:73:145; 8:80:726; 9:84:58; 9:89:284. Muslim 1:28, 254; 7:2803, 2813; 19:4298;
20:4490; 23:4910, 4959, 4961-4962. Abu Dawud 9:1571, 1573, 1579; 10:1793; 12:2262-
2263, 2283; 19:3032; 21:3238; 24:3575, 3615; 39:4340-4341. Nasa’i 1:1:4; 1:24:2743;
3:23:2437, 2452-2455, 2492, 2523; 3:24:2657; 4:26:3224; 5:37-4071; 5:45:4857-4858;
6:51:5599, 5606-5607. Ibn Maja 1:1:55; 3:8:1783, 1814. Tabari 9:82-90, 119.)

59. The Invasion of Palestine. On 26 May 632 Muhammad ordered his army to invade
Palestine. His rationale was that he needed to avenge the Muslim defeat at Muta three
years earlier; but his goal was conquest. The army was within minutes of marching out of
Medina when Muhammad died. As soon as he was properly buried, Abu Bakr gave the
order, and the campaign to the Holy Land continued. (Ibn Ishaq 652, 678. Ibn Hisham
#900, 917. Waqidi 546-550. Ibn Saad 2:235-238. Bukhari 5:57:77; 5:59:552, 744-745;
8:78:623; 9:89:297. Muslim 31:5958. Tabari 9:163-166.)

Analysis

Of these fourteen military engagements and two non-events, five were retaliatory. The
attacks on the Amir, the northern tribes and Palestine were part of ongoing conflicts while
the Tamim were being punished for a strike against Islam. The attack on the Mustaliq was
intended to punish a conquered tribe that was deemed insufficiently submissive; but it
was a non-event, as Muhammad cancelled the raid when the tribe managed to prove its
innocence.

Nine other attacks were completely unprovoked. These tribes had not attacked
Muhammad and there was no realistic chance that they might. The battles were simple
acts of conquest and destruction, resulting in Muhammad’s domination of both Yemen
and the north.

The skirmish between Muhammad’s tax collectors and the Tamim was unique among
Muhammad’s wars. It was the only time when Muhammad’s men had to defend
themselves against a completely unprovoked attack from a tribe with whom they had had
no previous dealings. Granted that the Tamim acted with good intentions – they believed
their friends the Khuza’a were being robbed – they were nevertheless interfering in what
did not concern them, for the Khuza’a had converted to Islam voluntarily and did not
resent the tax.

The only other event that might be considered “defensive” was the campaign to Tabuk. If
Muhammad had not honestly believed that the northern tribes intended to invade and
conquer Medina, it is unlikely that he would have gone to the trouble of marching 30,000
men through the desert. However, he was wrong. There was no campaign against Medina
and no enemy army against whom the Muslims needed to defend themselves. Yet instead
of returning home to announce this good news, Muhammad responded with another of
his unprovoked attacks on Dumat al-Jandal.

Finally, Muhammad threatened future warfare in his final prophecy. He declared his
intention to fight the Jews and the Christians simply because they were not Muslim.

Conclusion

In the final months of his life, when Muhammad was powerful and secure, he did not relax
his warfare. He used his power to continue attacking his neighbours. Although this period
of his life includes his only battle of defence, it also includes more unprovoked attacks
against new victims than any other. He made no apology for his agenda of conquest; it did
not need to be justified, for Allah had commanded it.

Part 1 covered the first two years April 623 – March 625.
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Part 2 covered the next two years June 625 – May 627.
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In Part 3 there was only space to cover the six months June 627 to January 628. That was
Muhammad’s fault. He shouldn’t have fought so much.
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Part 4 covered the period February 628 to June 629.

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Part 5 began in June 629 and covered events up to January 631, but Muhammad left the
scene of action in March 630.
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Part 6 covered the concluding period from March 630 until Muhammad’s death in June
632.
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