The Generalship of Muhammad: Battles and Campaigns of the Prophet of Allah

5. From the Mountain to the Trench

133  5 5 From the Mountain to the Trench The Muslim defeat at Uhud could have been decisive, but the Quraysh had failed to plan on following up any victory. Having withdrawn back to Makkah, they left Muhammad and the Muslims in position to recover from their loss and rebuild their movement. For the first six months after the defeat, from January to June 625, Muhammad concentrated on rebuilding, reorganizing, and preparing for his next encounter with the Quraysh. Nevertheless, during this period, and for almost the next eighteen months to follow, he avoided operations against his old adversary , instead preferring to attack or convert neighboring tribes and consolidate his hold on Madinah. Operations to impose Islam on his neighbors bore little fruit during this time. Instead, some of these tribes, taking their cue from the Qurayshi victory at Uhud, took measures to deceive and entrap Muslim raiders and those engaged on missionary efforts. Only a few weeks after Uhud, Muhammad dispatched six Muslims to the subtribes of the ῾Adal and al-Qara, having been urged to do so by a delegation from these groups. These Muslims were then ambushed along the way near al-Raji, with five of them killed outright and the survivor traded to the Quraysh to be executed and hung on a cross.1 Having suffered another setback, it was time for the Prophet to prepare his men to engage in a successful mission. Muhammad and his companions had to wait patiently for four months before they would be presented with a good opportunity. In the meantime, the Prophet decided to authorize an assassination mission 134 · The Generalship of Muhammad against the Qurayshi leader, Abu Sufyan, apparently as a rejoinder for Abu Sufyan having commissioned one to kill Muhammad.2 Any mission to assassinate a leader is typically dangerous, but for some reason Muhammad chose to send an inexperienced team of two men led by ῾Amr bin Umayyah to carry out his orders.3 The reason for this was probably because ῾Amr’s conversion to Islam was not known among the Makkans, possibly to make it easier to catch his prey unawares . They had one camel between them, and because ῾Amr’s assistant was partially lame, he rode the camel most of the way. When they reached Makkah, they hobbled the camel in a hidden location outside the city and walked in. ῾Amr’s companion urged him to go to the ka῾bah to circumambulate it and perform two prostrations in prayer. Table 5.1. Operations from the Battle of Uhud to the Destruction of the Banu Qurayzah Date Mission Enemy Muslims Leader Result Jan 625 Al-Raji; Lihyan unknown 7–10 Marthad al-Ghanwi Defeat Feb? 625 Assassination; Abu Sufyan 1 2 ῾Amr bin Umayyah Failure Apr 625 Qatan; Asad unknown 150 Abu Salamah Booty May 625 Bi᾿r Ma῾unah; Sulaym unknown 40–70 Al-Mundhir bin ῾Amr Defeat Jun 625 Qatan?; Asad unknown 1? Sufyan al-Lihyani Booty? Jun 625 Madinah; Banu Al-Nadir unknown unknown Muhammad Victory Aug 625 Dhat al-Riqi; Anmar/ Tha῾labah 400–800 Muhammad No Contact Nov 625 Badr alMaw ῾id; Quraysh unknown 1,500 Muhammad No Contact Jun 626 Dumat al-Jandal 1,000 Muhammad Booty Dec 626 Al-Khandaq; Quraysh/Allies 10,000 3,000+ Muhammad Victory Jan 627 Madinah; Banu Qurayzah 800 3,000+ Muhammad Victory From the Mountain to the Trench · 135 ῾Amr demurred, indicating he was too well known as a troublemaker in Makkah to get away with something so careless. Nevertheless, his companion persisted and finally prevailed and, as ῾Amr feared, he was recognized, the men shouting that he had obviously come to Makkah for no good purpose.4 The two rushed into the hills and hid in a cave while a Makkan search party combed the area for them. ῾Amr was compelled to kill one of the pursuers before they were able to make their escape. The two became separated when ῾Amr rashly decided to recover the still hanging body of the Muslim who had been crucified after the failed mission to the ῾Adal and al-Qara. Having been spotted, ῾Amr’s companion fled on the camel while ῾Amr escaped alone into the mountains on foot. The mission had been completely botched, largely because ῾Amr allowed himself two serious indiscretions. As he worked his way northward toward Madinah, he encountered an elderly one-eyed shepherd at a cave. The...