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Kharrar. After a five-day march they reached the spot to discover that the camels of Quraish
had left the day before; their flag, as usual, was white and carried by Al-Miqdad bin ‘Amr.
4. Ghazwa Al-Abwa’ or Waddan. It was in Safar 2 A.H., i.e. 623 A.D. The Messenger of Allâh
(Peace be upon him) set out himself at the headof 70 men, mostly Emigrants, to intercept a
camel caravan belonging to Quraish, leaving behind Sa‘d bin ‘Ubadah to dispose the affairs
in Madinah. When he reached Waddan, a place between Makkah and Madinah, he found
none.
·
In the process of this campaign, he contracted a non-aggressiopact with ‘Amr bin Makhshi
Ad-Damari. The provisions of the pact go as follows:
·
“This is a document from Muhammad, the Messenger of Allâh concerning Bani
Damrah in which he established them safe and secure in their wealth and lives. They
can expect support from the Muslims unless they oppose the religion of Allâh. They
are also expected to respond positively in case the Prophet sought their help.”
This was the first invasion under the leadership of the Messenger of Allâh. It took fifteen
days, with a white flag carried by Hamzah bin ‘Abdul Muttalib.
5. Buwat Invasion. It took place in Rabi‘ Al-Awwal 2 A.H., i.e. 623 A.D. The Prophet (Peace be
upon him), at the head of 200 companions, marched for Buwat to intercept a caravan
belonging to Quraish comprising 100 Quraishites, Omaiya bin Khalaf among them, and 2500
camels. When he reached Buwat, the caravan had left. Before leaving Madinah, he
mandated Sa‘d bin Mu‘adh to dispose the affairs until his return.
6. Safwan Invasion. In Rabi‘ Al-Awwal 2 A.H., i.e. 623 A.D. Karz bin Jabir at the head of a
small group of polytheists raided the pastures of Madinah and looted some animals. The
Prophet (Peace be upon him) at the head of 70 men left Madinah to fight the aggressors. He
went in their pursuit till he reached a place called Safwan near Badr but could not catch up
with them. This invasion came to be known as the preliminary Badr Invasion. During his
absence, the Prophet (Peace be upon him) entrusted Zaid bin Harithah with the disposition
of the affairs in Madinah. The standard was white in colour and entrusted to ‘Ali bin Abi Talib
to carry.
7. Dhil ‘Ushairah Invasion. It was in Jumada-al-Ula and Jumada-al-Akhirah the first or second 2
A.H., i.e. November-December 623 A.D. The Prophet (Peace be upon him) at the head of
150-200 Muslim volunteers, with 30 camels which they rode turn by turn, set out to
intercept a Quraishite caravan. He reached Dhil ‘Ushairah but the camels had left some days
before. These camels were the same that he went out to intercept on their return from
Syria, and were the direct reason for the break out of the battle of Badr. In the process of
this campaign, the Prophet Õáì Çááå Úáíå æÓáã contracted a non-aggression pact with Bani
Madlij and their allies Bani Dhumrah. Abu Salama bin ‘Abd Al-Asad Al-Makhzumi was
mandated to rule Madinah in his absence.
8. The Platoon of Nakhlah. It took place in Rajab 2 A.H., i.e. January 624 A.H. The Messenger
of Allâh (Peace be upon him) despatched ‘Abdullah bin Jahsh Asadi to Nakhlah at the head
of 12 Emigrants with six camels. ‘Abdullah was given a letter by the Prophet (Peace be upon
him) but was instructed to read it only after two days. He followed the instructions and
discovered that he was asked to go on to a place called Nakhlah standing between Makkah
and At-Ta’if, intercept a caravan for Quraish and collect news about their intentions. He
disclosed the contents of the letters to his fellows who blindly obeyed the orders. At
Nakhlah, the caravan passed carrying loads of raisins (dried grapes), food stuff and other
commodities. Notable polytheists were also there such as ‘Amr bin Al-Hadrami, ‘Uthman and
Naufal, sons of ‘Abdullah bin Al-Mugheerah and others... The Muslims held consultations
among themselves with respect to fighting them taking into account Rajab which was a
sacred month (during which, along with Dhul Hijja, Dhul Qa‘da and Muharram, war activities
were suspended as was the custom in Arabia then). At last they agreed to engage with them
in fighting. ‘Amr bin Al-Hadrami was shot dead by an arrow, ‘Uthman and Al-Hakam were
captured whereas Naufal escaped. They came back with the booty and the two prisoners.
They set aside one-fifth of the booty assigned to Allâh and His Messenger, and took the rest.
The Messenger disapproved of that act and suspended any action as regards the camels and
the two captives on account of the prohibited months already mentioned. The polytheists,
on their part, exploited this golden opportunity to calumniate the Muslims and accuse them
of violating what is Divinely inviolable. This idle talk brought about a painful headache to
Muhammad’s Companions, until at last they were relieved when the Revelation came down
giving a decisive answer and stating quite explicitly that the behaviour of the polytheists in
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