The Battle of Banu Qurayza After the defeat and withdrawal of the Confederates, the Prophet put on his battle garments once again and ordered Bilal to call out to the Muslims: “Let none of you pray ’Asr except at Banu Qurayza.” And so the Messenger of God set out, and the Muslims set out with him. He appointed ’Abdullah ibn Umm Maktum, the blind man, to guard Medina. It was concerning him that Allah Almighty revealed: “He frowned and turned away because there came to him the blind man.” The Prophet had appointed him to oversee Medina fourteen times, leading the people in prayer and taking care of the affairs of the city. The Prophet gave the banner to ’Ali ibn Abi Talib, who went ahead of the army toward Banu Qurayza and planted the banner at the base of their fortress. The people of Banu Qurayza began insulting the Prophet within ‘Ali’s hearing. He did not respond to them. Instead, he simply said: “The sword is between us and you.” The Muslims then headed toward Banu Qurayza. The distance from the Prophet’s Mosque to Banu Qurayza was approximately 10 kilometers. Some of the companions reached the time of ’Asr prayer while they were still on the road, but they did not pray ’Asr, because the Prophet had said: “Let none of you pray ’Asr except at Banu Qurayza.” The sun was almost setting, and they were about to miss the prayer within its proper time. The companions differed over what the Prophet’s command meant. Should they pray ’Asr before its time expired? Or should they delay it until they reached Banu Qurayza? Some of the companions prayed ’Asr and said that the Prophet did not intend to order them to let the prayer time pass. Rather, he intended them to hurry toward Banu Qurayza. Others did not pray ‘Asr, adhering to the Prophet’s command literally, until the time for ’Asr had passed. When they later told the Prophet what had happened, he approved the first group for having prayed ’Asr within its proper time. And he also approved the second group, whose ’Asr prayer had passed. Thus, the Prophet opened the door to ijtihad—independent reasoning—in front of his companions while he was still alive. The Siege of Banu Qurayza When the Prophet approached the fortresses of Banu Qurayza, he called out to them from outside the fortress: “O Ka’b! O Huyayy!” Huyayy ibn Akhtab had entered the fortress of Banu Qurayza when the Confederates retreated, keeping his promise to Ka’b. He had promised Ka’b when he was persuading him to break the treaty: “I promise you that if the Confederates are defeated, I will enter the fortress with you.” And so Huyayy was now there with them. The Prophet called out to them from outside the fortress. Then he laid siege to them. The Muslims gathered around Banu Qurayza and began shooting arrows at them. When Ka’b ibn Asad, the leader of Banu Qurayza, saw what was happening, he stood among his people and called upon them to embrace Islam. He said: “It has become clear to you that he is a Messenger sent by God, and that he is the one you find mentioned in your Scripture. Nothing prevented us from following him except our envy toward the Arabs, because he was not from the Children of Israel. So embrace Islam, and you will be safe regarding your lives, your wealth, your women, and your children.” But all the Jews of Banu Qurayza refused to embrace Islam. They said: “We will never abandon the judgment of the Torah, nor replace it with anything else.” Banu Qurayza then asked the Prophet to send one of his companions to them—Abu Lubabah—so that they could consult him. He was the closest of the companions to them because he had ties of kinship and commercial relationships with them. The Prophet agreed and said: “O Abu Lubabah, go to your allies. They have chosen you from among all the Aws.” When Abu Lubabah entered, the men came toward him, while the women and children wept before him because of the siege and everything that had happened to them after their treachery and betrayal. They wanted his advice and asked: “O Abu Lubabah, do you think we should submit to Muhammad’s judgment?” He replied: “Yes.” But then Abu Lubabah made a mistake. He threatened and frightened them by saying something that the Prophet had not said. He immediately realized what he had done. He repented and deeply regretted having gone beyond the Prophet’s instructions. He hurried away weeping and went to the Prophet’s Mosque, where he chained himself to one of the mosque’s pillars with a heavy chain. Abu Lubabah said: “By Allah, I will not move from this place until I know that I have betrayed Allah and His Messenger.” He also said: “By Allah, I will not release myself from this bond until the Messenger of God releases me with his own hands. And I will neither eat nor drink until Allah accepts my repentance or I die.” When the Messenger of God was informed of what had happened, he said: “Had he come to me, I would have asked Allah to forgive him. But since he has done what he has done, I will not release him until Allah accepts his repentance.” And Allah revealed concerning Abu Lubabah: “O you who believe, do not betray Allah and the Messenger, nor knowingly betray your trusts.” Whenever the Prophet passed by him, he would neither look at him nor speak to him. Abu Lubabah remained in this state for days beneath the scorching sun. His wife or daughter would release him when he needed to pray or relieve himself, and when he had finished, she would tie him up again. He remained in this condition for seven days, tasting neither food nor drink, until he collapsed unconscious. Then his repentance was revealed in the Noble Qur’an in Surah al-Tawbah: “And there are others who have acknowledged their sins. They have mixed a righteous deed with another that was evil. Perhaps Allah will turn to them in repentance. Indeed, Allah is Most Forgiving, Most Merciful.” When the verse was revealed, the companions hurried to bring him the good news. But Abu Lubabah said: “By Allah, I will not release myself until the Messenger of God is the one who releases me.” So the Messenger of God came to him and released him with his own hand. Banu Qurayza Submit to the Judgment of Sa’d ibn Mu’adh As for the Jews of Banu Qurayza, the siege continued for more than ten nights. They refused to obey the Messenger of God, so he intensified the siege against them, and Allah cast fear into their hearts. Finally, they said: “We will submit to the judgment of Sa’d ibn Mu’adh.” The Messenger of God sent for Sa’d ibn Mu’adh. He was still in Medina because he had been wounded during the Battle of the Confederates in one of his veins. The Prophet said: “Do not harm him. Carry him on a small animal.” The men of his tribe surrounded him, and his feet were dragging along the ground because he was being carried on a small animal so that his wound would not be aggravated. Some men from his tribe, the Aws, said to him: “O Sa’d, be good to your allies. The Messenger of God has appointed you to judge them, so be good to them. O Sa’d, show them kindness. O Sa’d, they have submitted to your judgment, so judge them.” Meaning: The matter is in your hands. You may forgive them and seek reconciliation, or you may punish them. Sa’d stood. He praised Allah and glorified Him. Then he turned toward the side where the Jewish leaders and the men of the Ansar were gathered and said: “Do you accept Allah’s covenant and His pledge that my judgment concerning you will be carried out and will not be rejected?” They said: “Yes.” Then he turned toward the Muslims and said: “And the Muslims?” The companions replied: “Yes.” Then he turned toward the direction where the Messenger of God was sitting. He lowered his head out of respect, reverence, and honor, and said: “And those who are here?” The Prophet replied: “Yes—and I am included.” Sa’d then gave his judgment concerning them. The Prophet and the Muslims carried out his judgment: the fighting men were executed and their wealth was confiscated. When they came to Huyayy ibn Akhtab, he said: “I have never regretted my hostility toward you. But whoever abandons Allah will himself be abandoned.” And he was killed. He was the man who had played the greatest role in gathering the tribes together against the Muslims. He was also the father of Safiyyah, whom the Prophet would marry two years later. A Response to the Claim That Islam Is a Religion of Killing This was also a powerful response to those who claim that Islam is a religion of killing. The Prophet did not kill except those who had fought against the Muslims. He did not kill civilian men, elderly people, children, or women. Those among them who embraced Islam were not killed. Those who had not participated in the fighting were not killed. He treated the women with mercy and did not separate a boy or girl from his or her mother. This decisive response was necessary because, had Allah not granted the Muslims victory, all of them—their women, children, elderly people, and peaceful civilians—could have been slaughtered in cold blood by the Confederates. The Torah and the Treatment of Defeated Peoples In the Torah, the Old Testament, which Jews and Christians revere, in the Book of Deuteronomy, Chapter 20, the following passage appears: 10. “When you approach a city to fight against it, proclaim an offer of peace to it.” Meaning: Before fighting any city, offer them peace. 11. “And if it responds to you peacefully and opens its gates to you, then all the people found in it shall be subject to forced labor and shall serve you.” Meaning: If they accept the offer of peace, all the people become servants and slaves. 12. “But if it does not make peace with you, but makes war against you, then besiege it.” Meaning: If they show hostility toward you, fight them and besiege them. 13. “And when the LORD your God gives it into your hand, you shall put all its males to the sword.” Meaning: If you fight them and God grants you victory over them, kill all the men who fought against you. 14. “But the women, the children, the livestock, and everything else in the city—all its spoil—you may take as plunder for yourselves, and you may eat the spoil of your enemies that the LORD your God has given you.” Meaning: Their women and offspring become captives, and all their wealth becomes spoils given to you by the Lord. *15. “Thus you shall do to all the cities that are very far from you, which are not the cities of the nations here.” 16. “But in the cities of these peoples that the LORD your God is giving you as an inheritance, you shall not leave alive anything that breathes.” This is what appears in the sacred book of the Jews. The Death of Sa’d ibn Mu’adh As for Sa’d, he had asked Allah for his end and for the manner in which he would die, and Allah granted him what he had asked for. Sa’d had said: “O Allah, make the wound burst open and make it my path to Paradise.” His wound then burst open, exactly as he had asked Allah, and blood flowed from it until it came out beyond the tent. Death was drawing near. The companions said: “The Messenger of God suddenly came rushing out from one of his chambers, dragging his garment behind him, and said to his companions: ‘Rise! Rise! Come and witness the death of a man whose death causes the Throne of the Most Merciful to tremble. Rise, for the angels have preceded you to him.’” He entered Sa’d’s tent. The people inside said to Sa’d: “Here is the Messenger of God, Sa’d.” Sa’d opened his eyes and looked at the Prophet. He said: **“O Messenger of God, I have just asked Allah not to take my soul until the last thing my eyes see of this world is your face, O Messenger of God. I bear witness that there is no god but Allah and that you are the Messenger of God.”** Then he died. The Prophet ordered that he be carried to al-Baqi’ and buried there beside the Prophet’s Mosque. When they carried his funeral bier, it felt remarkably light. They were astonished by this. They said: “O Messenger of God, by Allah, we have never seen a funeral bier as light as Sa’d’s.” The Prophet said: “Did the angels leave you anything to carry? Allah sent down seventy thousand angels who had never descended to the earth before this day, and they carried the funeral bier of Sa’d ibn Mu’adh.” Sa’d died young, at the age of thirty-six. He had spent only six years as a Muslim, yet the achievements he made for Islam were greater than what many people accomplish over much longer lives.