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route towards Batn Gharran, the scene of his Companions’ tragedy, and invoked Allâh’s mercy on
them. News of his march reached Bani Lihyan, who immediately fled to the mountain tops nearby
and thus remained out of his reach. On his way back, the Prophet (Peace be upon him) despatched
a group of ten horsemen to a place called Kura‘ Al-Ghamim, in the vicinity of the habitation of
Quraish in order to indirectly confirm his growing military power. All these skirmishes took fourteen
days, after which he left back for home.
EXPEDITIONS AND DELAGATIONS CONTINUED:
1. A platoon led by ‘Ukasha bin Al-Mihsan was despatched to a place called Al-Ghamir
inhabited by Bani Asad in the year six Hijri. The enemy immediately fled leaving behind
them two hundred camels which were taken to Madinah.
1. A platoon led by Muhammad bin Maslamah set out towards the habitation of Bani Tha‘labah
in Dhil Qassa. But a hundred men of the enemies ambushed and killed all of them except
Muhammad bin Maslamah who managed to escape but badly wounded.
2. In retaliation against Bani Tha‘labah, Abu ‘Ubaidah bin Al-Jarrah, at the head of forty men,
was despatched to Dhil Qassa. They walked that night and took the enemy by surprise in
the morning. Again, they fled to the mountains except one who was injured, and later
embraced Islam. A lot of booty fell to their lot in that particular incident.
3. A platoon, under the leadership of Zaid bin Haritha, was sent to Al-Jumum, the habitation of
Bani Saleem, in the same year. A woman from Bani Muzaina showed them the way to the
enemy’s camp. There the Muslims took some captives and gained a lot of booty. Later on,
the Messenger of Allâh (Peace be upon him) granted the woman her freedom and married
her to one of his followers.
4. Zaid bin Haritha, in Jumada Al-Ula 6 Hijri, at the head of a hundred and seventy horsemen,
set out to a place called Al-‘Ais, intercepted a caravan of Quraish led by Abul-‘As, the
Prophet’s relative and looted their camels. Abul-‘As escaped and took refuge in Zainab’s (his
wife and the Prophet’s daughter) house. He begged her to ask the Prophet (Peace be upon
him) for the restitution of his wealth. The Prophet (Peace be upon him) recommended, but
without coercion, that the people do that. They immediately gave the man back all his
wealth. He went back to Makkah, gave over the trusts to those entitled to them, embraced
Islam and emigrated to Madinah where the Prophet (Peace b e upon him) reunited him with
his wife, Zainab, after three and a half years of their first marriage contract. The verse
relating to prohibition of marriage between women Muslims and disbelievers had not been
revealed then.
5. In Jumada Ath-Thania, the same year, Zaid at the head of fifteen men raided Bani Tha‘labah
and captured twenty of their camels but the people had fled.
6. In Rajab of the same year, Zaid, at the head of twelve men, set out to a place called Wadi
Al-Qura in a reconnaissance mission to explore the movements of the enemy. The people
there attacked the Muslims, killed nine of them, while the rest including Zaid bin Haritha
managed to escape.
7. The invasion of
Al-Khabt
(diluted yoghurt) took place in the year eight Hijri i.e. before Al-
Hudaibiyah Treaty. Abu ‘Ubaidah bin Al-Jarrah led three hundred horsemen to observe a
caravan belonging to Quraish. Because of the inadequacy of food supplies, they began to
starve so much that they had
Khabt
(diluted yoghurt), hence the appellation “
The Army of
Al-Khabt”.
One of the men slaughtered nine camels at three times, three each time at
different stages of the mission. Abu ‘Ubaidah, the leader of the campaign prohibited him
from doing so. The sea was generous and presented them with an animal called
Al-‘Anbar
(sperm-whale) so rich in fat that they subsisted on it for half a month. When they came
back home, they narrated the story to the Prophet (Peace be upon him) , who commented
that it was provision granted by Allâh, and asked them to share him some of its meat.
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