Battle of Khybar
The Khyber
About a hundred miles from Madina on the route
to Syria was an important settlement of the Jews called the
Khyber. Literally "Khyber" means a fort, and the
place was so named because it consisted of a series of forts.
There were six or seven forts, and each fort was occupied
by a different section of the Jews. It was an oasis in the
desert, and was conspicuous for its fields and groves of date
palms. It was an important market as well. After their expulsion
from Madina, most of the Jews of Banu Qainuqa and Banu Nadir
took refuge in Khyber. In the
Battle of the Ditch, the Jews of Khyber had helped the Quraish.
When after the Battle of the Ditch, the Jews of Banu Quraizah
were executed, the Jews of Khyber vowed vengeance, and they
planned an invasion of Madina on a large scale. They were
seeking an alliance with the Quraish. In the meantime by the
treaty of Hudaibiya, the Quraish had made a truce with the
Muslims and were no longer free to join the Jews in an attack
on Madina. That was the first advantage that accrued to the
Muslims as a result of the treaty of Hudaibiya. After the
neutralization of the Quraish, in any conflict between the
Muslims and the Jews, the initiative now came to lie with
the Muslims. Taking full advantage of this favorable situation,
immediately on return from Makkah after signing the Hudaibiya
pact, the Holy Prophet led a Muslim force to Khyber.
The battle
The Jews were caught in surprise at the appearance
of the Muslim force. The Prophet asked them to submit. They
ridiculed the offer and said that their forts were impregnable,
and that they would teach the Muslims bitter lesson. They
shut themselves in their forts and the Muslims besieged them.
The first battle took place on the fort called Naim. The Muslim
force was commanded by Muhammad
SAWS Muslimah. The battle was fierce. The Muslim Commander
was martyred, but the fort was captured. In the following
days they captured other small fortresses. The main fort of
the Jews was Qamus, and it was regarded as impregnable. The
siege dragged on for twenty-one days, but the Jews held out.
The Holy Prophet sent a force under the command of Abu Bakr
to overpower the Jews, but the mission did not succeed. The
Holy Prophet changed the Commander every day, but the fort
proved to be a hard nut to crack. With the failure of successive
missions, the Holy Prophet said that the following day he
would entrust the command to a person who was the beloved
of Allah as well as His Prophet, and who would conquer the
fort. The following day when the Muslim forces assembled to
lead the attack, all were anxious to know as to who was to
have the honor of commanding the Muslim forces, and winning
the victory that day. The honor fell to the lot of Ali. The
Holy Prophet put the armor on Ali with his own hands. He handed
him the standard, and after praying for the victory of the
Muslims, the Holy Prophet commanded the Muslims forces to
attack the fort in the name of God. As the Muslim forces came
close to the fort, the Jew warrior Marhab emerged out of the
fort, and challenged Ali to a duel. Marhab also known as Abu
Ablit and Antar enjoyed reputation as a great warrior equivalent
to a thousand men. Marhab sang the battle song: "I am
Abu Ablit; My name is Antar. I am armed to the teeth. My home
is Khyber. I am a lion whom none can face. "
Ali accepted the challenge with the battle
song: "I am Ali, the lion of God. I fight in the name
of God. Be prepared for your doom. He awaits you." The
day, Ali appeared to be endowed with unusual extraordinary
power. He killed Marhab in no time. Thereafter another Jewish
warrior Rabih b Abu Aqiq stepped forward to challenge Ali.
Rabih charged at Ali, but he missed the mark. Thereafter Ali
charged at his adversary with the speed of lightning and severed
his head with the stroke of his sword. Thereafter another
Jew warrior stepped forward. He sang as he rushed at Ali:
"I am Yasir I am a ferocious lion. None can escape my
claws. In reply, Ali said: "O Infidel, your death calls
you. I invoke the aid of God and strike the heads of those
who come to oppose me " Yasir aimed a blow at Ali, but
Ali warded off the blow with great dexterity. Then Ali attacked
and Yasir fell dead. The death of three successive Jew warriors
unnerved the Jews and they ran back to shut themselves in
the fort. Before the Jews could shut the gate of the fort,
Ali struck at the gate and uprooted it. Thereafter the Muslim
force rushed inside the fort and massacred the Jews who resisted
them. Ali performed prodigies of valor and killed a large
number of the Jews. The Jews could not withstand the onslaught
of the Muslims for long. Soon their resistance broke down
and they laid down arms and sued for terms. Thus the fort
which was regarded as impregnable fell before the might of
Ali. According to legend, Ali exhibited supernatural strength
that day and was most ferocious than the fiercest of lions.
Verily, he was the "Lion of Allah".
Victor of Khyber
As Ali returned to the Muslim
camp, the Holy Prophet went forward to greet him, and hailed
him as the Victor of Khyber. There was great rejoicing in
the Muslim camp at this great victory. As a result of the
victory, in accordance with the Jewish law, all male Jews
could be executed. The Jews pleaded for mercy and undertook
to pay one half of the produce of their lands to the Muslims
as annual tribute. The Holy Prophet took a lenient view. He
accepted the terms offered by the Jews and a treaty was executed
accordingly. The Jews undertook to remain faithful to the
Muslims and accepted their dominance.
A prominent Jew lady, Zainab held a feast in
the honor of the Holy Prophet and his companions. At the dinner
the Holy Prophet first took a morsel of meat and after chewing
it threw it aside saying that the meat was poisoned. A companion
Bashr ate a good deal of meat and he died on the spot. The
feast ended in confusion. Zainab was put to explanation and
she admitted her guilt. She pleaded that she had poisoned
the meat thinking that if Muhammad
(Peace be on him) was a false prophet, the world would get
rid of him.
Accounts differ about the fate of Zainab. According
to one account, she became a Muslim and was pardoned. According
to another account she was executed.
Conquest of Fidak
After the conquest of Khyber, the Muslims marched
to Fidak, another Jewish settlement, not far from Khyber.
Having seen the fate of the people of Khyber, the people of
Fidak did not choose to fight. They agreed to execute a treaty
of peace with the Muslims on the same terms as had been agreed
upon in the case of the Jews of Khyber. As Fidak had fallen
without fight, the annual tribute therefrom was earmarked
as the private purse of the Holy Prophet. After meeting the
household expenses of the Holy Prophet the proceeds were to
be utilized for the welfare of the widows, the orphans, the
needy, the distressed and the wayfarers.
Consequences of the Battle of Khyber
The Battle of Khyber was another turning point
in the annals of Islam. It had far reaching consequences.
The Muslim rule was no longer confined to Madina and its immediate
environments. It came to be extended to other parts of Arabia
and the Jews who had been so hostile to the Muslims had become
the subjects of the Islamic state. The Quraish could no longer
bank on the support of the Jews. If we study the events that
took place one after the other we can discern the Hand of
God directing the course of things in favor of the Muslims.
The Hudaibiya pact which was apparently unfavorable to the
Muslims paved the way to the conquest of Khyber, and the conquest
of Khyber paved the way to the conquest of Makkah. Ali was
the Victor of Khyber. The exploits of Ali at Khyber have attained
the dimensions of legends. History is however silent as to
how Ali was rewarded for his services. The amount of the tribute
from Khyber was sufficiently large and Ali as the Victor of
Khyber must have got a lion's share thereof. Because of his
fraternity with the Holy Prophet, Ali had his share in the
tribute from Fadak as well. All these resources would have
made him sufficiently rich, and all accounts that dilate on
the poverty of Ali appear to be far from the truth.
Courtesy – www.witness-pioneer.org |
