Allah kept converging upon them. When night fell, Muslim slipped away and sought protection with a woman from Kindah. He was soon seized, brought before ʿUbayd Allah, and put to death. Muslim asked, “Let me make a last bequest.” ʿUbayd Allah replied, “Yes.”
Muslim then said to ʿUmar ibn Saʿd, “Man, I have a request of you, and there is no other Qurayshite here besides you. Husayn is almost upon you; send word to him so that he can turn back, for the people have deceived him and broken their pledge. I also owe a debt—settle it for me and see that my body is buried.” ʿUmar fulfilled his wishes.
He dispatched a rider on a she-camel to Husayn and met him four stages away. Husayn’s son ʿAlī al-Akbar said, “Turn back, Father, for these are the Iraqis—well-known for their treachery and scant loyalty.”
The sons of ʿAqīl objected, “This is no time to retreat,” and they urged him forward. Husayn said to his companions, “You see what has reached us, and I do not expect these people to support us. Whoever wishes to return, let him return.” Some of them left.
Meanwhile ʿUbayd Allah mustered the fighting men, showered them with money, and outfitted ʿUmar ibn Saʿd with four thousand troops. ʿUmar refused, disliking the idea of fighting Husayn, whereupon ʿUbayd Allah threatened, “If you do not march to him, I will remove you, demolish your house, and strike off your head.”
Husayn had fifty men with him, nineteen of whom were from his own household. He said, “People, let us go back the way we came.” They answered, “No.”
When this reached ʿUbayd Allah he considered letting Husayn go and said, “By Allah, he does not interfere with any part of my affairs. I see no harm in leaving him to go wherever he wishes.” Shimr retorted, “If you do that and the man escapes, you will never be able to justify it.”
So he wrote to ʿUmar:
Now that our ropes have caught him fast,
He hopes for escape—but it is far too late. (1)
ʿUmar moved against Husayn, and ʿUbayd Allah told Shimr, “Set out; if ʿUmar fights, so be it, but if he refuses, kill him—you will command the men.”
ʿUbayd Allah then secured the bridge, preventing anyone from crossing when word reached him that people were slipping away to join Husayn.