Part 8
Written by: Mawlawi Ahmad Ali
Assisting Disbelievers Against Muslims (Muzaahara Ala al-Muslimeen) and the Incident of Hatib Bin Abi Balta’ah:
During the time when Prophet Muhammad ﷺ was strategizing to conquer Makkah, he confided in a select few Companions about this plan, while the rest of the Companions only knew that he was preparing for a military campaign.
One of those informed was Hatib ibn Abi Balta’ah (RA), a notable companion who had partaken in the Battle of Badr. Despite not being originally from the Quraysh tribe, Hatib (RA) was raised in Makkah and did not have any tribal connections within the Quraysh.
Hatib committed espionage by sending a letter to the Quraysh, disclosing details about the Prophet’s ﷺ intentions. Allah revealed this matter to the Prophet (peace be upon him) through divine revelation. The Prophet (peace be upon him) promptly dispatched Ali, Al-Miqdad, and Zubayr (may Allah be pleased with them) to intercept the letter, directing them to locate a woman at Rawdat Khakh who possessed the letter.
The three Companions swiftly reached the designated area and found the woman. Upon requesting the letter, she initially denied its existence. Ali (RA) cautioned her, stating, “The Messenger of Allah does not deceive. Surrender the letter, or we will strip you.” Subsequently, she retrieved the letter from her hair braids, and the Companions delivered it to the Prophet (peace be upon him).
The Prophet ﷺ summoned Hatib and asked, “What is this, Hatib?” Hatib immediately confessed and explained, “O Messenger of Allah, do not be hasty in judging me. By Allah, I have not done this out of disbelief or apostasy. I am not from Quraysh, but I have been living among them. The other Muhajirun (Emigrants) have their relatives in Makkah who protect their families. I merely wished to earn favor with the Quraysh so they would safeguard my family.”
Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) sought permission to execute Hatib, urging, “O Messenger of Allah, this individual is a hypocrite! Permit me to severe his head.” However, the Prophet ﷺ responded, “Hatib has spoken the truth. His actions were not rooted in disbelief or apostasy, but rather stemmed from personal motivations, as he articulated.”
Although Hatib’s action was a severe crime—providing intelligence to the Quraysh against the Prophet (peace be upon him)—the Prophet (peace be upon him) did not declare him a disbeliever. Instead, he verified Hatib’s intentions and confirmed his explanation. Despite this, the act remained a grave sin, but the Prophet (peace be upon him) did not punish him, as Hatib (RA) was a participant in the Battle of Badr. The Prophet (peace be upon him) stated, “Allah has said to the people of Badr: اعملوا ما شئتم قد غفرت لكم,” meaning, ‘Do as you please, for I have forgiven you.’
It is important to note that the statement “Do as you please” refers only to minor sins, not disbelief or shirk (associating partners with Allah). Disbelief and shirk are never permissible, and anyone who commits them becomes a disbeliever, without exception. As Allah says:
“لَئِنْ اَشْرَكْتَ لَيَحْبَطَنَّ عَمَلُكَ” [الزمر:65]
Translation: “If you commit shirk, truly your deeds will be rendered null and void.” [Surah Az-Zumar: 65]
And:
“وَمَنْ يَّكْفُرْ بِالْاِيْمَانِ فَقَدْ حَبِطَ عَمَلُهٗ﴾ [المائدة:5].
Translation: “Whoever disbelieves, their deeds will be in vain.” [Surah Al-Ma’idah: 5]
The Ahl al-Sunnah wal-Jama’ah, across all four jurisprudential schools, agree that a Muslim spy does not become a disbeliever. However, they differ on the permissibility of executing him.
The incident of Hatib is recorded in “Sahih al-Bukhari” as follows:
حَدَّثَنَا عَلِيُّ بْنُ عَبْدِ اللَّهِ، حَدَّثَنَا سُفْيَانُ، حَدَّثَنَا عَمْرُو بْنُ دِينَارٍ، سَمِعْتُهُ مِنْهُ مَرَّتَيْنِ، قَالَ: أَخْبَرَنِي حَسَنُ بْنُ مُحَمَّدٍ، قَالَ: أَخْبَرَنِي عُبَيْدُ اللَّهِ بْنُ أَبِي رَافِعٍ، قَالَ سَمِعْتُ عَلِيًّا رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهُ يَقُولُ:
بَعَثَنِي رَسُولُ اللَّهِ ﷺ أَنَا وَالزُّبَيْرَ وَالْمِقْدَادَ بْنَ الْأَسْوَدِ، قَالَ: “انْطَلِقُوا حَتَّى تَأْتُوا رَوْضَةَ خَاخٍ، فَإِنَّ بِهَا ظَعِينَةً، وَمَعَهَا كِتَابٌ، فَخُذُوهُ مِنْهَا”. فَانْطَلَقْنَا تَعَادَى بِنَا خَيْلُنَا حَتَّى انْتَهَيْنَا إِلَى الرَّوْضَةِ، فَإِذَا نَحْنُ بِالظَّعِينَةِ، فَقُلْنَا: أَخْرِجِي الْكِتَابَ، فَقَالَتْ: مَا مَعِي مِنْ كِتَابٍ، فَقُلْنَا: لَتُخْرِجِنَّ الْكِتَابَ أَوْ لَنُلْقِيَنَّ الثِّيَابَ، فَأَخْرَجَتْهُ مِنْ عِقَاصِهَا، فَأَتَيْنَا بِهِ رَسُولَ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ، فَإِذَا فِيهِ: “مِنْ حَاطِبِ بْنِ أَبِي بَلْتَعَةَ إِلَى أُنَاسٍ مِنَ الْمُشْرِكِينَ مِنْ أَهْلِ مَكَّةَ يُخْبِرُهُمْ بِبَعْضِ أَمْرِ رَسُولِ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ”.
فَقَالَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ: “يَا حَاطِبُ مَا هَذَا؟” قَالَ: يَا رَسُولَ اللَّهِ! لَا تَعْجَلْ عَلَيَّ، إِنِّي كُنْتُ امْرَأً مُلْصَقًا فِي قُرَيْشٍ، وَلَمْ أَكُنْ مِنْ أَنْفُسِهَا، وَكَانَ مَنْ مَعَكَ مِنَ الْمُهَاجِرِينَ لَهُمْ قَرَابَاتٌ بِمَكَّةَ، يَحْمُونَ بِهَا أَهْلِيهِمْ وَأَمْوَالَهُمْ، فَأَحْبَبْتُ إِذْ فَاتَنِي ذَلِكَ مِنَ النَّسَبِ فِيهِمْ أَنْ أَتَّخِذَ عِنْدَهُمْ يَدًا، يَحْمُونَ بِهَا قَرَابَتِي، وَمَا فَعَلْتُ كُفْرًا وَلَا ارْتِدَادًا وَلَا رِضًا بِالْكُفْرِ بَعْدَ الْإِسْلَامِ. فَقَالَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ ﷺ: “لَقَدْ صَدَقَكُمْ”. قَالَ عُمَرُ: يَا رَسُولَ اللَّهِ! دَعْنِي أَضْرِبْ عُنُقَ هَذَا الْمُنَافِقِ؟ قَالَ: إِنَّهُ قَدْ شَهِدَ بَدْرًا، وَمَا يُدْرِيكَ لَعَلَّ اللَّهَ أَنْ يَكُونَ قَدِ اطَّلَعَ عَلَى أَهْلِ بَدْرٍ، فَقَالَ: اعْمَلُوا مَا شِئْتُمْ فَقَدْ غَفَرْتُ لَكُمْ”.
Translation:
Narrated by Ali ibn Abdullah: Sufyan narrated to us, Amr ibn Dinar narrated to me twice that he heard Hasan ibn Muhammad saying, “Ubaydullah ibn Abi Rafi’ narrated to me that Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) said:
The Messenger of Allah ﷺ sent me, Az-Zubair, and Al-Miqdad ibn Al-Aswad, saying: ‘Proceed until you reach Rawdat Khakh, where you will find a woman carrying a letter. Take the letter from her.’
So we set out on horseback, galloping quickly until we reached Rawdat Khakh, where we found the woman. We said to her, ‘Hand over the letter.’ She replied, ‘I do not have any letter.’ We warned her, ‘You must hand it over, or we will strip you.’
She then took it out from her hair braid. We brought it to the Messenger of Allah ﷺ, and it contained information from Hatib ibn Abi Balta’ah to some polytheists of Makkah, informing them about some of the plans of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ.
The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said: “O Hatib, what is this?”
Hatib replied: “O Messenger of Allah, do not be hasty with me. I was a man closely associated with Quraysh but not one of them by lineage. Those among the emigrants who are with you have family members in Makkah to protect their relatives and properties. I wished, since I lacked such lineage, to establish goodwill with them so they might protect my relatives. I did not do this out of disbelief, apostasy, or preference for disbelief after embracing Islam.”
The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said: “He has spoken the truth.”
Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) said: “O Messenger of Allah, allow me to strike the neck of this hypocrite!”
The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said: “He participated in the Battle of Badr, and what do you know? Perhaps Allah has looked upon the people of Badr and said: ‘Do as you wish, for I have forgiven you.’”
An additional narrative includes:
حَدَّثَنِي إِسْحَاقُ بْنُ إِبْرَاهِيمَ أَخْبَرَنَا عَبْدُ اللَّهِ بْنُ إِدْرِيسَ، قَالَ: سَمِعْتُ حُصَيْنَ بْنَ عَبْدِ الرَّحْمَنِ عَنْ سَعْدِ بْنِ عُبَيْدَةَ عَنْ أَبِي عَبْدِ الرَّحْمَنِ السُّلَمِيِّ عَنْ عَلِيٍّ رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهُ، قَالَ: بَعَثَنِي رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ وَأَبَا مَرْثَدٍ الْغَنَوِيَّ وَالزُّبَيْرَ بْنَ الْعَوَّامِ، وَكُلُّنَا فَارِسٌ، قَالَ: انْطَلِقُوا حَتَّى تَأْتُوا رَوْضَةَ خَاخٍ، فَإِنَّ بِهَا امْرَأَةً مِنَ الْمُشْرِكِينَ، مَعَهَا كِتَابٌ مِنْ حَاطِبِ بْنِ أَبِي بَلْتَعَةَ إِلَى الْمُشْرِكِينَ، فَأَدْرَكْنَاهَا تَسِيرُ عَلَى بَعِيرٍ لَهَا حَيْثُ قَالَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ، فَقُلْنَا: الْكِتَابُ، فَقَالَتْ: مَا مَعَنَا كِتَابٌ، فَأَنَخْنَاهَا فَالْتَمَسْنَا، فَلَمْ نَرَ كِتَابًا، فَقُلْنَا: مَا كَذَبَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ، لَتُخْرِجِنَّ الْكِتَابَ أَوْ لَنُجَرِّدَنَّكِ، فَلَمَّا رَأَتْ الْجِدَّ أَهْوَتْ إِلَى حُجْزَتِهَا، وَهِيَ مُحْتَجِزَةٌ بِكِسَاءٍ فَأَخْرَجَتْهُ، فَانْطَلَقْنَا بِهَا إِلَى رَسُولِ اللَّهِ ﷺ، فَقَالَ عُمَرُ: يَا رَسُولَ اللَّهِ! قَدْ خَانَ اللَّهَ وَرَسُولَهُ وَالْمُؤْمِنِينَ، فَدَعْنِي فَلِأَضْرِبَ عُنُقَهُ.
فَقَالَ النَّبِيُّ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ: مَا حَمَلَكَ عَلَى مَا صَنَعْتَ؟ قَالَ حَاطِبٌ: وَاللَّهِ! مَا بِي أَنْ لَا أَكُونَ مُؤْمِنًا بِاللَّهِ وَرَسُولِهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ، أَرَدْتُ أَنْ يَكُونَ لِي عِنْدَ الْقَوْمِ يَدٌ يَدْفَعُ اللَّهُ بِهَا عَنْ أَهْلِي وَمَالِي، وَلَيْسَ أَحَدٌ مِنْ أَصْحَابِكَ إِلَّا لَهُ هُنَاكَ مِنْ عَشِيرَتِهِ مَنْ يَدْفَعُ اللَّهُ بِهِ عَنْ أَهْلِهِ وَمَالِهِ، فَقَالَ النَّبِيُّ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ: “صَدَقَ، وَلَا تَقُولُوا لَهُ إِلَّا خَيْرًا”. فَقَالَ عُمَرُ: إِنَّهُ قَدْ خَانَ اللَّهَ وَرَسُولَهُ وَالْمُؤْمِنِينَ، فَدَعْنِي فَلِأَضْرِبَ عُنُقَهُ، فَقَالَ: “أَلَيْسَ مِنْ أَهْلِ بَدْرٍ، فَقَالَ: لَعَلَّ اللَّهَ اطَّلَعَ إِلَى أَهْلِ بَدْرٍ، فَقَالَ: اعْمَلُوا مَا شِئْتُمْ، فَقَدْ وَجَبَتْ لَكُمْ الْجَنَّةُ، أَوْ فَقَدْ غَفَرْتُ لَكُمْ”. فَدَمَعَتْ عَيْنَا عُمَرَ، وَقَالَ: اللَّهُ وَرَسُولُهُ أَعْلَمُ.
Translation:
Narrated `Ali:
Allah’s Messenger (ﷺ) dispatched me, Abu Marthad and Az-Zubair, and all of us were riding horses, and said, “Go till you reach Raudat-Khakh where there is a pagan woman carrying a letter from Hatib bin Abi Balta’ a to the pagans of Mecca.” So we found her riding her camel at the place which Allah’s Messenger (ﷺ) had mentioned. We said (to her),”(Give us) the letter.” She said, “I have no letter.” Then we made her camel kneel down and we searched her, but we found no letter. Then we said, “Allah’s Messenger (ﷺ) had not told us a lie, certainly. Take out the letter, otherwise we will strip you naked.” When she saw that we were determined, she put her hand below her waist belt, for she had tied her cloak round her waist, and she took out the letter, and we brought her to Allah’s Messenger (ﷺ) Then `Umar said, “O Allah’s Apostle! (This Hatib) has betrayed Allah, His Apostle and the believers! Let me cut off his neck!” The Prophet asked Hatib, “What made you do this?” Hatib said, “By Allah, I did not intend to give up my belief in Allah and His Apostle but I wanted to have some influence among the (Mecca) people so that through it, Allah might protect my family and property. There is none of your companions but has some of his relatives there through whom Allah protects his family and property.”
The Prophet (ﷺ) said, “He has spoken the truth; do no say to him but good.”
`Umar said, “He as betrayed Allah, His Apostle and the faithful believers. Let me cut off his neck!”
The Prophet (ﷺ) said, “Is he not one of the Badr warriors? May be Allah looked at the Badr warriors and said, ‘Do whatever you like, as I have granted Paradise to you, or said, ‘I have forgiven you.”‘ On this, tears came out of `Umar’s eyes, and he said, “Allah and His Apostle know better.”
