a messenger to Saʿd. He arrived riding a Bedouin’s donkey, whose only saddle, they say, was a pad of palm-fibre. A man of the Banū ʿAbd al-Ashhal walked beside him, praising the rights of Banū Qurayẓah, reminding him of their covenant and of the service they had rendered on the Day of Buʿāth. He kept saying, “They have chosen you over all others, hoping for your mercy and compassion toward them. Spare them, for they are an adornment to you and a source of strength.”
The man repeated this at length, but Saʿd gave him no answer. When they drew near, the man said, “Will you not respond to what I am saying?” Saʿd replied, “The time has come when I shall not let the blame of any blamer deter me for the sake of Allah.” The man left him, returned to his people, and they asked, “What news?” He told them that Saʿd would spare none of them and that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ had killed their fighting men—about six hundred, it is claimed—at the house of Abū Juhm by al-Balāṭ. It is said that their blood reached the olive-stone blocks in the market. Their women and children were taken captive, and their property was divided among the Muslims who were present. The Muslims had thirty-six horses that day.
Then Ḥuyayy ibn Akhṭab was brought out. The Messenger of Allah ﷺ said to him, “Has Allah disgraced you?” He replied, “You have prevailed over me, and I blame only myself for having fought you and shown you such hostility.” The Prophet ﷺ ordered him to be executed, and his head was struck off, all in the presence of Saʿd.
Among the captives was ʿAmr ibn Saʿdī, a Jew. When they brought the prisoners forward to be killed, he was missing. “Where is ʿAmr?” they asked. They said, “By Allah, we do not see him. Here is the rope he was tied with—we do not know how he slipped away.” The Messenger of Allah ﷺ said, “He escaped because of what Allah knew to be in his heart.”
Thābit ibn Qays ibn Shamās then came to the Messenger of Allah ﷺ and said, “Grant me al-Zubayr”—meaning Ibn Baṭṭā—and his wife, and he granted them to him. Thābit returned to al-Zubayr and said, “Abū ʿAbd al-Raḥmān, do you recognise me?”—for al-Zubayr was an old blind man that day. He replied, “Would a man fail to recognise his brother?” Thābit said, “Today I wish to repay the favour you once did me.” Al-Zubayr responded, “Do so, for the noble repays nobility with nobility.” So Thābit set him free, saying, “I have nothing…"