Siege
of Makkah
Abdul Malik wanted to persuade the
Syrian chiefs to attack Makkah but all of them refused to face Abdullah bin
Zubair (رضي الله عنه) and turn the Ka'bah
into a battlefield. He then left Damascus and went to Kufa. There he induced
Hajjaj bin Yusuf Thaqafi to do it. Hajjaj took three thousand soldiers and left
Kufa in Jumad Al-Awwal 72 A.H. and went to Madinah from there he went to Taif
and set up camp according to Abdul Malik's instructions. From Taif, he used to
send his cavalry to Arafat and they would come back after engaging in small
skirmishes. Several months passed by in this way. Then Hajjaj wrote to Abdul
Malik to send him some more soldiers as reinforcements and permit him to go
ahead and lay siege to Makkah.
Abdul Malik conceded to Hajjaj's
request and sent five thousand men to him and wrote to Tariq to attack Madinah
and after taking over Madinah, move to Makkah and help Hajjaj. Hajjaj besieged
Makkah in the month of Ramadan fixed a catapult on the mount of Abu Qubais and
started launching stones. For the Makkans fasting in the month of Ramadan and
being attacked by stones was indeed a very difficult month. Getting tired of
the siege, the people began to leave from the city. Dhul-Qa'dah followed
Ramadan and Shawwal and the Makkans did not get any respite from the severity
and pressure of the siege.
Abdullah bin Zubair (رضي الله عنه) went to face the enemy daily and tried to
get the better of the attackers but the number of his troops kept dwindling and
so his plan did not yield any movement towards victory.
Many Makkans were going out of the
city and the shortage and cost of foodstuff had shaken the hopes of those
remaining. In Dhul-Qa'dah 72 A.H. Tariq expelled Talhatun Nida, Abdullah bin
Zubair's Governor, from Madinah and made a Syrian the Administrator of Madinah,
he himself left for Makkah along with five thousand soldiers. That added to
Hajjaj's strength considerably and the little hope the Makkans had, vanished.
It was in that state that the month of Dhul Hijjah began and pilgrims from a
far started pouring into the city.
Abdullah bin Zubair (رضي الله عنه) had allowed Hajjaj to perform his Hajj
but he did not do Tawaf (circumbulation of the Ka'bah) nor did he do Sai
(running and walking) between the mounts of Safa and Marwah. When Abdullah bin
Zubair (رضي الله عنه) wanted to go to the
plain of Arafat, Hajjaj prevented him. For this reason, he made the sacrifice
in Makkah itself. There was no Imam on the plain of Arafat to lead the prayers
and the pilgrims could not perform all the rites of Hajj. Hajjaj did not stop
the siege or the rain of stones even during the Hajj and so going around the
Ka'bah was fraught with danger. With the arrival of the pilgrims in Makkah, the
severity of the famine also increased. Abdullah bin Omar (رضي الله عنهما) also came to perform Hajj that year.
Realizing the gravity of the situation, he sent a message to Hajjaj, "O
slave of Allah! Think about the people from far off lands that have come for
Hajj. They should have the opportunity to make Tawaf (circumbulation of the
Ka'bah) and Sai (running and walking) between the mounts of Safa and Marwa.
Stop the rain of stones until the end of Hajj." The message had its
effect. Hajjaj stopped the catapult but did not make Tawaf himself nor did he
allow Abdullah bin Zubair to go to the plain of Arafat. With the conclusion of
the Hajj, the announcement was made on behalf of Hajjaj that those coming from
abroad should leave for their homes at once because Ibn Zubair (رضي الله عنه) was soon going to be showered with
stones. As soon as they heard the ominous proclamation, they set out for their
respective destinations. Along with them most of those who had remained in
Makkah escaped.
Hajjaj resumed his attack with the catapult.
A large boulder fell on the roof of the Ka'bah and it collapsed. With the fall
of that stone, a peal of thunder came from the heavens. Lightning flashed and
then darkness engulfed the earth and the sky. Hajjaj's soldiers became
terrified and gave up using the catapult. Hajjaj consoled and encouraged them
and said, "This lightning and this peal of thunder have come to help me.
They symbolize my victory. Don't give way to fear at all."
The darkness continued for a couple
of days and a loud crackling bolt of lightening killed a few of Hajjaj's
soldiers. The soldiers were extremely concerned. The lightening was flashing
again the next day and a thunderbolt this time hit two soldiers of Abdullah bin
Zubair (رضي الله عنه) who died on impact.
This gladdened Hajjaj's heart and his soldiers also heaved a sigh of relief.
Hajjaj himself loaded stones and began shooting them. After that, the fear that
was gripping the whole army vanished and the launching of stones resumed more
vigorously. Abdullah bin Zubair (رضي الله عنه)
used to offer his prayer at the Ka'bah and big stones would fall around him but
it did not disturb his concentration on Allah and his devotion during his
prayer in the least.
The siege continued with the same
intensity and force. No supplies from outside Makkah could come in. Things came
to such a pass that Abdullah bin Zubair (رضي الله عنه)
slaughtered his horse and distributed it among the people. He had a stock of
grain and dates. He distributed as much as was necessary for them to survive.
The purpose was to stand the siege as long as possible. When Hajjaj saw that
his plan was not going to succeed, he began to write to Abdullah bin Zubair's
men and promise them security and amnesty to those who would join him. This
worked and many of them parted with Abdullah bin Zubair (رضي الله عنه) and went over to Hajjaj's side finally,
only a few persons were left with him. His two sons, Hamza and Habib, also left
their father and went over to Hajjaj. The third son remained with his father
and displayed valor on the battlefield until the last breath of his life. When
thousands of men left Abdullah bin Zubair (رضي الله
عنه) and joined the opposing side, Hajjaj gathered them together
and addressed them as follows:
You can estimate the remaining power
of Abdullah bin Zubair (رضي الله عنه).
His men are in such short number that if each of you threw a handful of pebbles
on them, they would all die. Besides that, all of them are hungry and thirsty.
O my dear Syrians and Kufans! Advance now. Abdullah bin Zubair (رضي الله عنه) will live only for a few seconds.
Now prior to this speech, Hajjaj had
sent a letter to Abdullah bin Zubair (رضي الله عنه)
which read:
"Now you have been rendered
powerless. You have become helpless in all respects. Come under my security and
take the oath for Amir al-Muminin, Abdul Malik. You will be treated with all
honor and every wish of yours will be fulfilled. I have been ordered by Amir
al-Muminin to try my best to invite you to reconciliation and not to be hasty
in killing you."
No comments:
Post a Comment