proceed to Nakhlah, and he has forbidden me to compel any one of you. So whoever longs for martyrdom, let him set out; and whoever recoils from death, let him turn back. As for me, I am going forward in obedience to the Messenger of Allah.”
He departed, and the eight men went with him: Abū Ḥudhayfah ibn ʿUtbah, ʿUkkāshah ibn Miḥṣan, ʿUtbah ibn Ghazwān, Saʿd ibn Abī Waqqāṣ, ʿĀmir ibn Rabīʿah, Wāqid ibn ʿAbd Allāh al-Tamīmī, Suhayl ibn Bayḍāʾ al-Fihrī, and Khālid ibn al-Bukayr.
He led them along the Ḥijāz route until, when they reached a mining area above al-Furʿ called Bahrān, Saʿd ibn Abī Waqqāṣ and ʿUtbah ibn Ghazwān lost a camel of theirs, so the two of them stayed behind to look for it. ʿAbd Allāh continued on with the rest until he encamped at Nakhlah.
A Quraysh caravan passed by, carrying raisins and tanned hides. Among its escort were ʿAmr ibn al-Ḥaḍramī and several others. When the caravan folk saw the Muslims they grew wary. ʿUkkāshah then showed himself—his head had been shaved—and when they caught sight of him they felt secure, saying, “ʿUmrah pilgrims; you have nothing to fear from them.”
The Muslims consulted one another—it was the closing days of Rajab—and said, “By Allah, if you leave them this night they will reach the Sacred Precinct and become immune to you there; yet if you kill them, you will be killing in the sacred month.” They wavered, then agreed to attack them and seize their goods. Wāqid ibn ʿAbd Allāh shot ʿAmr ibn al-Ḥaḍramī and killed him; they captured ʿUthmān ibn ʿAbd Allāh and al-Ḥakam ibn Kaysān, while Nawfal ibn ʿAbd Allāh escaped.
Ibn Jahsh and his companions then returned to Madinah with the caravan and the two captives. On arrival they set aside one-fifth of the booty for the Prophet ﷺ, and the Quran was later revealed confirming this apportionment. The Prophet ﷺ nevertheless disapproved of Ibn al-Ḥaḍramī’s killing, whereupon the verse was sent down: “They ask you about the sacred month—fighting therein. Say, ‘Fighting in it is a grave offence…’” (al-Baqarah 2:217). The Prophet ﷺ accepted ransom for the two prisoners, and as for