Battle of Harra: Difference between revisions

The word "harra" refers to black rocky terrains. Since the uprising took place in rocky terrains East of Medina, called "Harra Waqim" or "Harra Zuhra" (attributed to Banu Zuhra, a Jewish tribe), it was called the event of Harra. Most historical sources take the event to have occurred on the second day of [[Dhu l-Hijja]] or two or three days to the end of Dhu l-Hijja, [[63]] ([[August 2]], or [[August 27]]-[[August 28|28]], 682), thus the accounts according to which it took place in [[62]]/683 are wrong.

According to reports, [['Abd Allah b. Hanzala]] had a pivotal role in this movement and even people pledged [[allegiance]] to him as the leader of the uprising. There are different reports about the causes and grounds of this uprising. According to many of these reports, the cause of this protest and uprising was the corruption of [[Yazid]]. They say that the governor of [[Medina]] sends a group of nobles of the city to visit Yazid in [[Syria]]. When the group comes back to Medina, they testified to depravity and perversion of Yazid and invite people to uprise to dethrone him from caliphate. The other reports link this movement to the movement of [['Abd Allah b. Zubayr]] in [[Mecca]] and even it is said that 'Abd Allah b. Hanzala was Ibn Zubayr's agent. Some of the reports, also, count [[Mu'awiya]]'s economic policies as the reasons for this movement, because it caused poverty and famine in the city.

Upon the command of 'Abd Allah b. al-Zubayr, people of Medina dismissed [['Uthman b. Muhammad]] from the rule of [[Medina]], rebelled against the [[Umayyads]], and sieged about 1000 Umayyad people who had gathered in Marwan b. Hakam's house.

'Abd Allah b. al-Zubayr appointed [['Abd Allah b. Hanzala]] as the ruler of Medina. This account as well as the ones mentioned before show how influential 'Abd Allah b. al-Zubayr was on this uprising and its leaders.

The agent of the [[Syria]] government made attempts to make people obey [[Yazid]], but to no avail. Yazid's threatening letter, as well as [[Nu'man b. Bashir]]'s intercession to conciliate people, did not work. Thus Yazid decided to equip an army to quench people of Medina. When [['Ubayd Allah b. Ziyad]] refused to undertake the commandership of the army, Yazid gave the commandership to [[Muslim b. 'Uqba al-Murri]]. Different accounts have mentioned his army as having 5000 to 27000 soldiers. The attack was accompanied by [[Husayn b. Numayr]] (Arabic: {{ia|حصين بن نمير}}). Husayn undertook the commandership of people of [[Homs]].

People allowed the agents of the Umayyad government to go out of Medina on the condition that they give no information about Medina to the Syrian army and do not attend the war. After they went out of Medina, the Umayyad people broke their oath, and [['Abd al-Malik b. Marwan]]'s father suggested him to devise a plan for an attack on Medina together with Muslim b. 'Uqba.

After crossing Harra, Muslim b. 'Uqba settled in east of Medina, and gave a three day deadline to people of Medina. Then he bypassed the trench and entered the city with the help of the Banu Haritha tribe—who were deceived by financial promises—and committed incredible crimes there in such a way that he came to be known as the criminal.

Upon the order of Yazid, [[Muslim b. 'Uqba]] announced that his army is at liberty to do anything to people's lives and property for three days. According to [[Ibn Kathir]] and [[al-Suyuti]], the plunders and crimes of the army in these three days led to a horrific catastrophe. And according to [[al-Mas'udi]], it was the most hideous event after the [[martyrdom]] of [[Imam al-Husayn (a)]]. In these three days, the army of Muslim b. 'Uqba committed abhorrent crimes such as rapes, taking fetuses out of pregnant women's wombs, killing infants, offending the outstanding [[companions of the Prophet (s)]], such as [[Jabir b. 'Abd Allah al-Ansari]] who was blind and [[Abu Sa'id al-Khudri]].

According to some sources, over 4000 or 10,700 or 11,700 people were killed in the Event of Harra. Of these, 700 people were memorizers of the [[Qur'an]] and 80 people were the companions of the [[Prophet (s)]] such that none of the companions who fought in the [[Battle of Badr]]—who were called "[[Badriyyun|People of Badr]]" (Ahl al-Badr)—stayed alive. [['Abd Allah b. Hanzala]] and his sons were also killed.

After all these crimes, Muslim b. 'Uqba gathered people of Medina and coerced them to pledge their allegiance to [[Yazid]] on the condition that they and their fathers are Yazid's slaves, that is, they are owned by Yazid as booties of the war, and whoever refuses to obey the order will be decapitated.

Only [['Ali b. 'Abd Allah b. 'Abbas]] (with the intercession of some of his relatives who were in Yazid's army) and [[Imam al-Sajjad (a)]] were exempted from pledging their allegiance.

'''Imam al-Sajjad (a)'s house as a safe refuge''': since Imam al-Sajjad (a) did not accompany the rebels, his household remained safe, and his house came to be a safe place for many women and children and even the family of [[Marwan b. Hakam]]. Imam al-Sajjad (a) sent Marwan's family, together with his own family, to [[Yanabu']].

Muslim b. 'Uqba's treatment of Imam al-Sajjad (a): after the event, Imam al-Sajjad (a) went to Muslim together with Marwan b. Hakam and his son. It seems that Yazid had already recommended Muslim to treat Imam al-Sajjad (a) with respect. Thus Muslim honored the Imam (a), and saddled a horse to send him back home. Some people take the unexpectedly good treatment of Imam al-Sajjad (a) by Muslim b. 'Uqba to be caused by a pray that the Imam (a) recited in order to create fear in Muslim's heart.

'''The neutrality of some companions with respect to rebels''': some companions, such as [['Abd Allah b. 'Umar]], [[Abu Sa'id al-Khudri]] and [[Jabir b. 'Abd Allah al-Ansari]] stayed neutral and did not accompany the people of [[Medina]].

Ibn Qutayba has compared the early and unexpected defeat of people in the Event of Harra with the resistance of [['Abd Allah b. al-Zubayr]] and his few companions to the same army, tracing the cause of people's defeat in Harra to be their having two commanders. But there are no reports in the sources about any disagreements among the heads of Medina's uprising.

Muslim b. 'Uqba is reported as having said that, after his confession to [[monotheism]] (tawhid), his best deed was the massacre of people in Harra. Some Muslim historiographers maintain that the violent oppression of people in the Event of Harra was motivated by the revenge of the [[Umayyad]] bloods who were killed in the [[Battle of Badr]] by Muslims and the revenge of the murder of [['Uthman]] by people of Medina, especially [[Ansar]].

== References ==

* Dīnawarī, Aḥmad b. Dāwūd al-. ''al-Akhbār al-ṭiwāl''. Edited by ʿAbd al-Munʿim ʿĀmir. Cairo: 1960- Qom: 1368 Sh.

* Dhahabī, Muḥammad b. al-Aḥmad al-. ''Tārīkh al-Islām wa wafayāt al-mashāhīr wa l-aʿlām''. Edited by ʿUmar ʿAbd al-Salām al-Tadmurī. Beirut: 1410 AH-1990.

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