Page 29 - World Religions I - Islam

struck [the enemy in the battle of Badr] with one twice as great, you said, "From where is this?"
Say, "It is from yourselves." Indeed, Allah is over all things competent. And what struck you on
the day the two armies met was by permission of Allah that He might make evident the [true]
believers." - Al-Imran (The Family of Imran) 3:165-166 (trans. Sahih)
o "Let not the Unbelievers think that our respite to them is good for themselves: We grant
them respite that they may grow in their iniquity: But they will have a shameful
punishment." - Al-Imran (The Family of Imran) 3:178 (trans. Yusuf Ali). This verse addresses the
"unbelievers" at Mecca who reveled in their victory after the Battle of Uhud.
• In AD 627, the Meccans, along with gathered tribes throughout the region, marched against Medina with a
force of 10,000 in what was later to become known as the Battle of the Trench.64
• Muhammad was forewarned of the plans and ordered a defensive trench to be dug around Medina.
Traditional accounts claim the idea of a trench came from the Persian convert, Salman al-Farsi. The
stratagem had not previously used by the Arabs but was known to the Sassanids.137
• The forces at Medina numbered 3,000, practically all the inhabitants of the city.65
o The Banu Qurayza, a Jewish tribe within Medina, initially remained neutral and refused to fight.
• The defenses around Medina were able to hold back the two-week siege of the Meccan
confederacy, leading to their withdrawal. Only 9 men were killed during the Battle of the Trench: 6
Muslims and 3 from the confederates.138
• During the battle Banu Qurayza entered into negotiations with the Meccans, who attempted to enlist
their aid against the Muslims.66
o Even though nothing came of the negotiations, the act was a violation of a pact which had been
established years earlier between the Banu Qurayza and the Muslims.
o The tribe was charged with treason and besieged by the Muslims. The Banu Qurayza
surrendered, and their men were beheaded. The biography by Ibn Ishaq claims that the
command to attack and subdue the Banu Qurayza tribe was given by Gabriel himself. The
siege lasted 25 nights. An offer was made to the Banu Qurayza to spare their lives should
they convert from Judaism to Islam, but they refused. The number of men who were
executed that day ranged from 600-900.
o The spoils of war—including women and children—were divided among the Islamic
warriors that had participated in the siege.
• In AD 628, Muhammad set forth with a strong detachment to attend the pilgrimage in Mecca.
o The Meccans refused him entry, but agreed to the Truce of Hudaybiyya—a ten-year treaty
which allowed the following:
 The Quraish recognized Muhammad's right to proselytize without hindrance. The
Truce of Hudaybiyya took place after Muhammad began a systematic
encirclement of Mecca by subduing the neighboring tribes.103
 Muhammad and the Muslims would be allowed entry to Mecca the following year
to perform the pilgrimage.
• During his time in Medina, Muhammad's began a series of operations which was to end with the
expulsion of the Jews from Arabia.67 68
• The Jews had irritated Muhammad by their refusal to recognize him as a prophet, their ridicule and
arguments, and their economic supremacy.
o The Jews were skeptical of the idea of a non-Jewish prophet and had concerns about the
incompatibilities between the Qur'an and their own scriptures.
o When Muhammad recited Surah 3:84 which asserts his belief in Jesus as a prophet sent by
God, the most prominent Jews of Medina said that they had no belief in Jesus nor in anyone
who believed in him.
• Several Jewish tribes were forced from their positions in and around Medina.

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