by THE STATUS OF BELIEVERS WHO FIGHT EACH OTHER
Author: Said Yai
وَإِنْ طَائِفَتَانِ مِنَ الْمُؤْمِنِينَ اقْتَتَلُوا فَأَصْلِحُوا بَيْنَهُمَا فَإِنْ بَغَتْ إِحْدَاهُمَا عَلَى الْأُخْرَى فَقَاتِلُوا الَّتِي تَبْغِي حَتَّى تَفِيءَ إِلَى أَمْرِ اللَّهِ فَإِنْ فَاءَتْ فَأَصْلِحُوا بَيْنَهُمَا بِالْعَدْلِ وَأَقْسِطُوا إِنَّ اللَّهَ يُحِبُّ الْمُقْسِطِينَ
“If two parties of the believers happen to fight, make peace between them. But then, if one of them transgresses against the other, fight the one that transgresses until it reverts to Allah’s command. And if it does revert, make peace between them with justice, and be equitable for Allah loves the equitable.” (Chapter Al-Hujurat/The Chambers:9)
Concise Interpretation
“If two parties of the believers,” whether there are many of them or not, “happen to fight,” whether they are in the middle of the fight, or are about to, “make peace between them.” by making a peace treaty. “But then, if one of them transgresses against the other,” by refusing the treaty or displeased with Allaah’s rules, “fight the one that transgresses until it reverts to Allah’s command.” I.e., until they revert to the truth.
“And if it does revert, make peace between them with justice, and be equitable for Allah loves the equitable.”
Sheikh As-Sa’di said, “Indeed, fighting (battling/war) damages the brotherhood in faith. Therefore, it is among the gravest of major sins. Indeed, faith and brotherhood in faith aren’t gone by war (between the believers), as with other sins lesser than shirk (sins that do not erase faith completely). And this is the beliefs of ahl sunnah wal jama’a, as in the matter of the obligation of initiating peace between the believers in fairness, the obligation of fighting against people who transgress the treaty or rebel, until they revert to Allaah’s command, and (after fighting them), their wealth are to be protected (not becoming war bounty), and what is allowed is to kill them if they continue to transgress, but not to take their wealth.”
Explanation of the Verse
Reason behind the Revelation of the Verse
The scholars have different opinions regarding the reason behind the revelation of this verse. The valid reason is revealed in the following hadith:
عن أَنَس -رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهُ- قَالَ: قِيلَ لِلنَّبِيِّ صلى الله عليه وسلم: لَوْ أَتَيْتَ عَبْدَ اللهِ بْنَ أُبَيٍّ. فَانْطَلَقَ إِلَيْهِ النَّبِيُّ -صلى الله عليه وسلم- وَرَكِبَ حِمَارًا فَانْطَلَقَ الْمُسْلِمُونَ يَمْشُونَ مَعَهُ وَهْيَ أَرْضٌ سَبِخَةٌ فَلَمَّا أَتَاهُ النَّبِيُّ -صلى الله عليه وسلم- فَقَالَ: إِلَيْكَ عَنِّي! وَاللَّهِ لَقَدْ آذَانِي نَتْنُ حِمَارِكَ. فَقَالَ رَجُلٌ مِنَ الأَنْصَارِ مِنْهُمْ: وَاللَّهِ لَحِمَارُ رَسُولِ اللهِ -صلى الله عليه وسلم- أَطْيَبُ رِيحًا مِنْكَ. فَغَضِبَ لِعَبْدِ اللهِ رَجُلٌ مِنْ قَوْمِهِ فَشَتَمَا فَغَضِبَ لِكُلِّ وَاحِدٍ مِنْهُمَا أَصْحَابُهُ فَكَانَ بَيْنَهُمَا ضَرْبٌ بِالْجَرِيدِ وَالأَيْدِي وَالنِّعَالِ فَبَلَغَنَا أَنَّهَا أُنْزِلَتْ: {وَإِنْ طَائِفَتَانِ مِنَ الْمُؤْمِنِينَ اقْتَتَلُوا فَأَصْلِحُوا بَيْنَهُمَا}.
“It is narrated from Anas -may Allaah be pleased with him- that he said, “The Messenger of Allaah -peace and prayer of Allaah be upon him- was suggested that, ‘It is better for you to meet ‘Abdullaah Ibn Ubay,’ the Messenger of Allaah -peace and prayer of Allaah be upon him- then went with the believers to a piece of barren land. When the Prophet -peace and prayer of Allaah be upon him- met ‘Abdullaah ibn ubay, he said, ‘Stay away from me! By Allah, the smell of your mule annoys me.’ Then a man from Anshaar said, ‘By Allaah! The mule of Allaah’s messenger -peace and prayer of Allaah be upon him- is more fragrant than you! ‘ then a man from among ‘Abdullaah’s tribe was upset because ‘Abdullah was ridiculed. The two of them continued to throw insults to each other, and their friends were also upset towards the other party. Then they were hitting each other with the branches of date, their hands, and their sandals. Then we were informed that because of that fight, a verse was revealed, : If two parties of the believers happen to fight, make peace between them.
Allaah The Exalted’s decree,
وَإِنْ طَائِفَتَانِ مِنَ الْمُؤْمِنِينَ اقْتَتَلُوا فَأَصْلِحُوا بَيْنَهُمَا
“If two parties of the believers happen to fight, make peace between them.”
In this verse, Allaah the Glorified and Exalted still labeled the two groups as believers, even though a party of believers fought and killed another party of believers. Subsequently, Allaah didn’t label anyone or any party that kill others as disbeliever.
Imam Al-Bukhari said, “Allaah the Glorified and Exalted labeled them as believers.” It shows that Imam Al-Bukhari understood that the fight didn’t expel one of the two parties out of Islam.
Likewise, if we take a look at the verse that tells about qishaash (retribution). Allaah the Glorified and Exalted declared,
يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا كُتِبَ عَلَيْكُمُ الْقِصَاصُ فِي الْقَتْلَى الْحُرُّ بِالْحُرِّ وَالْعَبْدُ بِالْعَبْدِ وَالْأُنْثَى بِالْأُنْثَى فَمَنْ عُفِيَ لَهُ مِنْ أَخِيهِ شَيْءٌ فَاتِّبَاعٌ بِالْمَعْرُوفِ وَأَدَاءٌ إِلَيْهِ بِإِحْسَانٍ
“Believers! Retribution is prescribed for you in cases of killing: if a freeman is guilty then the freeman; if a slave is guilty then the slave; if a female is guilty, then the female. But if something of a murderer’s guilt is remitted by his brother this should be adhered to in fairness, and payment be made in a goodly manner. This is an alleviation and a mercy from your Lord; and for him who commits excess after that there is a painful chastisement.” (Chapter Al Baqara/The Cow:178)
In this verse, Allaah the Glorified and Exalted labeled the murderer as a believer, and He didn’t dismiss his faith and the brotherhood upon faith within him, with His decree, “But if something of a murderer’s guilt is remitted by his brother..,”
Allaah still labeled the murderer as the brother of the other party.
It is similar to a saying from the Prophet -peace and prayer of Allah be upon him- below:
لَا تَرْجِعُوا بَعْدِي كُفَّارًا يَضْرِبُ بَعْضُكُمْ رِقَابَ بَعْضٍ
“Do not commit infidelity after I passed away, by which some of you decapitate the others.”
In this hadith, even though the Messenger of Allaah -peace and prayer of Allaah be upon him- mentioned them as disbeliever, but the Messenger of Allaah -peace and prayer of Allaah be upon him- still considered them as a part of the others. It indicates that the infidelity or act of disbelieving that is intended by this hadith is not the kind that expel the perpetrator from Islam.
Another example is a hadith of the Prophet -peace and prayer of Allaah be upon him- when he mentioned about the rebellion that took place among his companions,
وَتَمْرُقُ مَارِقَةٌ عِنْدَ فِرْقَةٍ مِنَ الْمُسْلِمِينَ يَقْتُلُهَا أَوْلَى الطَّائِفَتَيْنِ بِالْحَقِّ
“And there will be a group of people who separated themselves when a rift occurred among the muslims. Then a better group will fight them with the truth.”
And we’ve known from the history of Islam that after the dearh of ‘Utsman Ibn ‘Affan -may Allaah be pleased with him-, there was a dispute between the supporter of the government led by ‘Ali Ibn Abi Thalib and the supporter of Mu’aawiya Ibn Abi Sufyan -may Allaah be pleased with them both- which led to a battle between two large groups of muslim.
The Prophet -peace and prayer of Allaah be upon him- has informed us about this battle beforehand, when he mentioned about his grandson, Al-Hasan Ibn Ali Ibn Abi Thaalib -may Allaah be pleased with them both- :
إِنَّ ابْنِي هَذَا سَيِّدٌ وَلَعَلَّ اللَّهَ أَنْ يُصْلِحَ بِهِ بَيْنَ فِئَتَيْنِ عَظِيمَتَيْنِ مِنَ الْمُسْلِمِينَ.
“Indeed, this son of mine (i.e., his grandson) is a sayyid (leader). May Allaah reconcile between two large groups of muslim through him.”
Therefore, we know that the battle and the killings that happened between the two large groups didn’t cause one of them to renounce their religion, to be disbeliever who were expelled from Islam.
There are two kinds of infidelity (kufr)
It is very important to emphasis in this article that not all of the phrases; wickedness, infidelity, hypocrisy, and oppression that are mentioned in the Qur’anic verses and hadith of the Prophet -peace and prayer of Allaah be upon him- mean that they cause its perpetrator to be expelled from Islam.
There are two kinds of wickedness (al–fisq), infidelity (al-kufr), hypocrisy (an–nifaq) and oppression (adzh-dzhulm), i.e., the major and the minor of them. The major infidelity (al kufr al akbar) expels its doer from Islam, whereas the minor one (al kufr al ashgar) doesn’t expel its doer from Islam.
Examples of Al-Kufr Al-Akbar (major infidelity) is mentioned in the following verse:
وَإِذْ قُلْنَا لِلْمَلَائِكَةِ اسْجُدُوا لِآدَمَ فَسَجَدُوا إِلَّا إِبْلِيسَ أَبَى وَاسْتَكْبَرَ وَكَانَ مِنَ الْكَافِرِينَ
“And when We ordered the angels: “Prostrate yourselves before Adam,” all of them fell prostrate, except Iblis. He refused, and gloried in his arrogance and became one of the defiers.” (Chapter Al Baqara/The Cow:34)
… إِنَّ الَّذِينَ كَفَرُوا وَظَلَمُوا لَمْ يَكُنِ اللَّهُ لِيَغْفِرَ لَهُمْ وَلَا لِيَهْدِيَهُمْ طَرِيقًا …
“Likewise, Allah will neither forgive those who denied the Truth and took to wrong-doing nor will He show them any other way,” (Chapter An Nisaa’/The Women:167)
The meaning of infidelity in these verses is major infidelity that expels its doer from Islam.
As for Example of Al-Kufr Al-Ashgar, it is mentioned the hadith below:
The Messenger of Allaah -peace and prayer of Allaah be upon him- said,
سِبَابُ الْمُسْلِمِ فُسُوقٌ وَقِتَالُهُ كُفْرٌ
“Insulting a muslim is wickedness (a sin) and killing him is infidelity.”
Infidelity that is intended in this hadith doesn’t indicate that killing is a sin that expels its doer from Islam.
This is the beliefs of Ahl Sunnah wal Jama’a. They do not classify people who commit major sins, such as killing others, committing adultery, drinking liquor, etc, as disbeliever/infidel. It is vastly different from the beliefs of the astrayed, from the group of khawarij. They rule that those who commit major sins are disbelievers.
Allah the Exalted’s decree,
فَإِنْ بَغَتْ إِحْدَاهُمَا عَلَى الْأُخْرَى فَقَاتِلُوا الَّتِي تَبْغِي حَتَّى تَفِيءَ إِلَى أَمْرِ اللَّهِ
“But then, if one of them transgresses against the other, fight the one that transgresses until it reverts to Allah’s command.”
It is narrated from Al-Haarits Al-A’war that ‘Ali Ibn Abi Thaalib -may Allaah be pleased with him- once asked, when he was fighting against the rebels during the battle of Al-Jamal and Shiffiin, “Are they polytheists?,” he answered, “No, they are from polytheism.” He was asked again, “Are they hypocrites?,” he answered, “No, the hypocrites do not remember Allaah except just a little.” He was asked again, “If so, who are they?,” he replied, “they are our brothers, who are rebelling against us.”
Rebels that leave the obedience towards the fair government are allowed to be fought and killed. The indications is the verse that we’re currently discussing. If there is a group that has: “(1) power to rebel, and unwilling to obey the fair authority, (2) mistake or misled ideology in understanding the indication, and (3) appointed an imam (authority), then the legal government or authority should send an envoy to them and persuade them to obey him.
If they state that they’ve been oppressed, the authority should solve it for them. If there is no oppression committed by the authorities against them, but they still rebelling, the authority is allowed to fight them until they return to their obedience towards him.
However, it is important to remind us all through this article that fighting against them doesn’t mean that it is lawful to confiscate their properties, enslave them, and enslave their children and wives after the battle concluded, just like the case of the disbelievers. They are muslims; when, during the battle against them, they run away, it is allowed to chase them, and if they are being imprisoned, they should not be killed, if they are wounded, they should be treated.
If the three stipulations above are met, then the imam/authority is allowed to fight against them.
But if they are not met, for example, the rebels has : (1) a little number and powerless, (2) no misconception in understanding the indications, or (3) not appointed anyone as their imam and not announced any war against the muslims, it is not allowed to fight them. Except if they are very threatening to the muslims, then if its the case, it is allowed to fight them.
This verse points out that it is compulsory to fight against rebels who truly commit rebellion against an imam, or government, or who kill the muslims. It doesn’t oppose a hadith of the Prophet -peace and prayer of Allah be upon him-
وَقِتَالُهُ كُفْرٌ
“Killing him is infidelity.”
We know that It is impossible for Allaah to order His slaves to commit any sort of infidelity act. Therefore, the order in that verse is a kind of taqarrub (act of getting closer) to Allah. We also know that Abu Bakr Ash-Shiddiq -may Allaah be pleased with him- embattled muslims who refused to pay their zakat.
Not Taking The Matter of Killing the Rebels Lightly
Even though Allaah the Glorified and Exalted permits us to fight against rebels and anhone who create destruction on earth, however, it is only rightful for the authority to not taking the matter of killing them lightly. The decision to kill them should be based on careful consideration. The authority should be able to weigh the good and the bad impacts that can happen should they decide to fight against the rebels.
It is narrated from Nafi’ -may Allah have mercy on him that there was a man who came to Ibn ‘Umar -may Allaah be pleased with them both- and said, “
O Abu ‘Abdirrahman! Don’t you hear the verse that Allaah mentioned in His book,
وَإِنْ طَائِفَتَانِ مِنَ الْمُؤْمِنِينَ اقْتَتَلُوا
“If two parties of the believers happen to fight, “
What is stopping you from fighting against (people) just like what Allaah mentioned in His book?”
He replied, “O son of my brother! I don’t want to misinterpret this verse. Not waging any war against them is more dear to me than mistakenly understanding the verse, in which Allaah the Exalted said,
وَمَنْ يَقْتُلْ مُؤْمِنًا مُتَعَمِّدًا …
“Whoever kills a believer deliberately …,”
And he said, indeed, Allaah declared,
وَقَاتِلُوهُمْ حَتَّى لاَ تَكُونَ فِتْنَةٌ …
“And fight them until there is no more fitna …,”
From this narration, we know that Ibn ‘Umar -may Allaah be pleased with him- was very cautious in deciding a rule over a matter, because it was such a huge matter, and he was afraid to commit any mistake, resulting in a believer mistakenly kills his brother, thus he falls under the verse,
وَمَنْ يَقْتُلْ مُؤْمِنًا مُتَعَمِّدًا فَجَزَاؤُهُ جَهَنَّمُ خَالِدًا فِيهَا وَغَضِبَ اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَلَعَنَهُ وَأَعَدَّ لَهُ عَذَابًا عَظِيمًا
“And he who wilfully slays a believer his reward is Hell, where he will abide. Allah’s wrath is against him and He has cast His curse upon him, and has prepared for him a great chastisement.” (Chapter An Nisaa’/The Women:93)
Likewise, he understood that the permission to fight against the rebels is due to the consideration between achieving a great benefit, or avoiding great harm. However, if by fighting against them not on Allaah’s behalf, and causes terrible fitna among the muslims, then the fight is not permitted in sharia. Allaah the Glorified and Exalted decreed,
وَقَاتِلُوهُمْ حَتَّى لَا تَكُونَ فِتْنَةٌ وَيَكُونَ الدِّينُ لِلَّهِ فَإِنِ انْتَهَوْا فَلَا عُدْوَانَ إِلَّا عَلَى الظَّالِمِينَ
“Keep on fighting against them until mischief ends and the way prescribed by Allah prevails. But if they desist, then know that hostility is directed only against the wrong-doers.” (Chapter Al-Baqara/The Cow:193)
And in Allaah the Exalted’s decree,
فَإِنْ فَاءَتْ فَأَصْلِحُوا بَيْنَهُمَا بِالْعَدْلِ وَأَقْسِطُوا إِنَّ اللَّهَ يُحِبُّ الْمُقْسِطِينَ
“and be equitable for Allah loves the equitable.”
The Messenger of Allaah -peace and prayer of Allaah be upon him- mentioned the virtue of the equitable. He said,
إِنَّ الْمُقْسِطِينَ عِنْدَ اللَّهِ عَلَى مَنَابِرَ مِنْ نُورٍ عَنْ يَمِينِ الرَّحْمَنِ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ وَكِلْتَا يَدَيْهِ يَمِينٌ الَّذِينَ يَعْدِلُونَ فِى حُكْمِهِمْ وَأَهْلِيهِمْ وَمَا وَلُوا
“Indeed, the equitable (just) later will be on Allaah’s side, on pulpits made by light, on the side of The Mercifu’sl right hand, and both of Allaah’s hands are right. They are people who were just when they rule, were just towards their family, and towards people whom are under their responsibility.”
Conclusion
By reading the explanation above, we can conclude that:
- Killing a believer doesn’t expel one from Islam, but the perpetrator has committed a major sin and is threated to be punished in Hellfire.
- The authority has the right to fight the rebel who heavily threaten the country that they rule, and it is allowed to kill them if it doesn’t create larger trouble.
This is the end of this article. May it benefits us all.
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