A few detachments still remained in al-Sham (1). Most of the Damascene army marched out to confront them, together with the contingents from Hama, Aleppo, and the surrounding districts. The Muslims took their positions opposite them. Although the enemy outnumbered the Muslims many times over, they were in a state of extreme weakness. They drew close to Hama, but Allah humbled them, and they never once dared advance against the Muslims. Some Muslims wished to charge them, yet found no one else willing, so only minor skirmishes occurred—much like those in the Battle of the Trench, when ʿAlī ibn Abī Ṭālib (may Allah be pleased with him) slew ʿAmr ibn ʿAbd Wudd al-ʿĀmirī after he and a handful of idolaters had breached the trench.

Likewise, whenever a party of the enemy ventured forward, the Muslims put them to flight, even though that advancing force was several times larger than the small band of Muslims who sallied out to meet it; on every occasion the Muslims emerged victors (4). In the last engagements the Muslims pursued them, but did not overtake them until they reached the Euphrates crossing. Some of the enemy were on an island in the river; as soon as they glimpsed the Muslim vanguard, they fled and mingled with the rest, yet the Muslims still struck down a number of them (5). ⦗66⦘

Their final crossing and the evacuation of al-Sham took place in the early days of Rajab. Between Ghazan’s first passage and this last withdrawal there had been nothing but tremors and minor clashes. We resolved more than once to go to Hama to join the fighters when word reached us that the Muslims intended to raid those