The Massacre of the Banu Qurayzah: Difference between revisions

According to the traditional Islamic sources, in 627 AD as a result of the [[Battle of the Trench]] and the betrayal of the Muslims by the Jewish tribe of Banu Qurayza, the Muslims under the direct military command of the prophet [[Muhammad]] laid siege to the Banu Qurayza compound. After a siege of around 2 weeks, depending on the source, the Jews of Banu Qurayza surrendered and entrusted their fate to a trusted intermediary from the Muslims of the tribe of 'Aws, Sa'ad bin Mu'adh. Sa'a'd bin Mu'adh, however, claiming to be following the law of the Torah itself, advised Muhammad to slaughter the men folk of the tribe and sell the women and children into slavery. Muhammad took this advice and as a consequence between 400 and 900 prisoners of the tribe were slaughtered, many in front of their families, and the rest of the tribe were sold into slavery. Although later Muslim historians such as Tabari and ibn Kathir attest to and provide details of this event, the lack of attestation to this event in any primary sources for over 100 years after the event and the lack of attestation of the existence of the Banu Qurayza in early documents such as the [[Constitution of Medina]], as well as evidence of continued Jewish-Arab (Muhaajir) cooperation well into the period of the early Arab conquests, has caused critical historians to call into question the historicity of the entire event.  

According to traditional sources, in Hijra year 5 (627 AD), on the orders of the Islamic Prophet [[Muhammad]], almost between four hundred and nine hundred Jews of a Medinan tribe named Banu Qurayza were massacred by the muhaajiruun and their Medinese Muslim allies. The killing began early in the day, ending in torchlight. Those of the tribe who escaped death were taken captive and sold at [[Slavery|slave]] markets.

Muhammad’s problems with the Jews had not started here. Before the Banu Qurayza, the Jews of the tribes of the Banu Nadir and Banu Qaynuqaa’ had already been assaulted, stripped of their goods including their precious palm trees and exiled. The Banu Qurayzah had retained their position in Medinah through an alliance with the prophet. All was not well with them, though, as Muhammad continued to press on them to accept him as the messenger off [[Allah]]. As Muhammad had lost the battle of [[Uhud]] this had become difficult for him, and there was already doubt in the minds of some Muslims (mostly muhaajiruun) as to their loyalty to the prophet.