The Prophet at Al-Madienah(3)

The Quraishites were too exhausted to follow up their advantage, either by attacking Al-Madienah or by driving the Muslims from the heights of Ohod. They retreated from the Medinite territories, after barbarously mutilating the corpses of their dead enemies.

The moral effect of this disastrous battle was such as to encourage some neighbouring nomad tribes, to make sudden raids upon the Medinite territories; but most of these were repressed.

The Jews also were not slow to involve in trouble the Prophet and his followers. They tried to create hostility among his people, and defamed him and his adherents. They mispronounced the words of the Qu’ran, so to give them an offensive meaning. They also caused their poets who were superior in culture and intelligence, to use their influence to spread rebellion among the Muslims. One of their distinguished poets, called Kaab, of the tribe of Nadeer, spared no efforts in publicly condemn the ill–success of the idolaters, after their defeat at Badr. By his satires against the Prophet and his disciples, and his elegies on the Makkahns who had fallen at Badr, he succeeded in exciting the Quraishites to that frenzy of revenge which broke out at Ohod. He then returned to Al-Madienah, where he continued to attack the Prophet and the Muslims, men and women, in terms of the most offensive nature. Though he belonged to the tribe of Nadeer, which had entered into the covenant with the Muslims and pledged itself both for the internal and external safety of the State, he openly directed his acts against the Commonwealth of which he was a member. Another Jew Sallam by name of the same tribe, behave equally fiercely and bitterly the Muslims, as did Kaab. He lived with a party of his tribe at Khaibar, a village five day’s journey northwest of Al-Madienah. He made every effort to excite the neighbouring Arab tribes against the Muslims. The Muslim Ummah with the object of securing safety among the community passed a sentence of outlawry upon Kaab and Sallam.

The members of another Jewish tribe, namely Bani Quaynouqa, were sentenced to expulsion from the Medinite territory, for having openly and knowingly violated the terms of the charter. It was necessary to put an end to their hostile actions, for the sake of maintaining peace and security. The Prophet had to go to their headquarters, where he required them to enter definitively into the Muslim Ummah by embracing Islam, or to leave Al-Madienah. To this they replied in the most offensive terms; “You have had a quarrel with men, ignorant of the art of war. If you are desirous of having any dealings with us, we shall show you that we are the men.” ^[1] They then shut themselves up in their fortress and set the Prophet and his authority at disobedience. The Muslims decided to reduce them, and siege was accordingly laid to their fortress without loss of time. After fifteen days they surrendered. Though the Muslims at first intended to inflict some server punishment on them, they contented themselves with banishing the Bani Quaynouqa. The tribe of Nadeer had now behaved in the same way as Quaynouqa. They had likewise, knowingly and publicly, disregarded the terms of the Charter. The Prophet sent them a message similar to that which was sent to their brethren, the Quaynouqa. They, relying on the assistance of the hypocrites’ party, returned a disobedient reply. After a siege of fifteen days, they sued for terms. The Muslims renewed their previous offer; and the Jews of Nadeer chose to evacuate Al-Madienah. They were allowed to take with them all their movable property, with the exception of their arms. Before leaving Al-Madienah, they destroyed all their dwellings, in order to prevent the Muslims from occupying them. ^[2] Their immovable property, warlike material, etc, which they could not carry away with them, were distributed by the Prophet with the consent of the Helpers among the Refugees. A principle was henceforth adopted that any acquisition, not made in actual warfare, should belong to the state, and that its disposal should be left to the judgment of the ruling authorities. ^[3]