Friday, April 17, 2020

Apostate prophet gets gory; the prophet desired to massacre al Nadir and Qaynuqa?

In answer to the video "The Fate of the Jews of Medina (TGP 1)"

After the victory of Badr, the prophet's enemies, declared and hidden, were greatly troubled at the growing political power of the Muslims. They increased their plotting in the most michievious of ways. They would try causing dissensions among the former ennemies of Aws and Khazraj, now united under the banner of Islam, by arousing memories of the terrible war of Bu'ath when the Aws eventually came out victorious against Khazraj. But Muhammad continued to talk to them, emphasizing their Islamic unity and brotherhood until their tears ran down in emotion and they embraced one another. The Quran reminds of this tension in 2:87-89 and further stresses how it was Allah who facilitated the union of the various rival and waring tribes under the prophet's guidance
8:63"had you spent all that is in the earth, you could not have united their hearts, but Allah united them; surely He is Mighty, Wise".
Street fights would errupt between the 2 communities, Muslims and Jews. At one point a Muslim woman was publicly humiliated, her clothes brought down by a group of Jews from the Bani Qaynuqa. The physical altercation that ensued resulted in deaths on both sides, igniting a cycle of revenge killings. This malicious and provocative stance was at complete odds with that of the Muslims towards them.

The prophet went to such extents in respecting his side of the pledge in maintaining a peaceful coexistence, that he for instance rebuked a Muslim who in his argument with a Jew, boasted of Muhammad's superiority over Moses
“It is not your task to go about speaking of the superiority of God’s Messengers in comparison to one another.” Then, the Holy Prophet mentioned a partial superiority of Moses and consoled the Jew."
After that incident with the Muslim woman that led to people dying, the Prophet urged their notables to honor their agreement. Instead of expressing remorse or apologies, being their community's representatives, they responded with arrogance, retracting themselves officially from the accord, challenging the prophet to war and retreating behind their stronghold. In reference to Badr they said
"We are not weak like the Quraysh, we are a people that know fighting until death. You will have an experience of courage when you encounter us".
Islam and its message of universal brotherhood and indiscriminate justice, that knows no boundaries of races, affiliations, or social background, was threatening their political and economic grip, all of which depended on the traditional clan system of the Arabs, as well as the unjust economic system that crushed the weak. They needed to act fast before Islam's popularity would grow bigger. Until now the Muslims were told to pardon and turn away from the treacherous among them 5:13.

But when they retreated behind their fortress and started making preparations for war, the Muslims had to take action in defense
"Among the Jews of Madina, the Banu Qaynuqa were the first to break the treaty which had been settled between them and the holy prophet" (ibn Hisham, and many other independant sources confirm his views).
The Qaynuqa were besieged for 15 days without fighting until they came out, promising to accept the prophet's ruling. This led to the expulsion of the whole tribe from Medina. They were allowed to take all their movable possessions to Syria
8:56-58"Those with whom you make an agreement, then they break their agreement every time and they do not guard (against punishment). Therefore if you overtake them in fighting, then scatter by (making an example of) them those who are in their rear, that they may be mindful. And if you fear treachery on the part of a people, then throw back to them on terms of equality; surely Allah does not love the treacherous".
The prophet of God acts first and foremost according to the divine directives of the Revelation, as is explicitly stated in the verse; those who repeatedly break the agreements, after being overtaken in battle, must be exiled as an example, not killed. As to those from whom one fears imminent treachery, then one may pre-emptively break the agreement. The historical records speak of an ally of the Qaynuqa, Abdullah Ibn Ubayy, as pleading for their banishment instead of a harsher treatment. Even if we consider this report, containing the rejected Waqidi in its chain, then still, there is no indication the prophet thought otherwise than to banish them. At most, what can be said is that ibn Ubayy may have personally assumed that they would be treated more harshly, given their provocations, hence his intervention. The prophet even allowed them the unmerited favor of keeping some of their precious possessions in the process, something not made obligatory in the verse.

Prior to exiting their stronghold, they were also assured that their lives and families would be spared in exchange of their wealth (Muhammad b. Saad). The prophet however neither asked for their death, nor their lives when the matter was settled. These people of Banu Qaynuqa had clearly shown they were untrustworthy and in addition, could instigate worse conflicts by lobbying other tribes. Their expulsion and cutting of ties within the area of the Muslim community was meant at preventing such a possibility.


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