or for any loss that follows from it, because he acted only to ward off the aggressor’s harm; and when the attacker is killed in self-defence, it is as though the assailant has killed himself.

Shaykh Taqī al-Dīn (Ibn Taymiyyah) said: “One must repel the person who assaults him; if the assault can be stopped only by killing the attacker, then this is permissible for him by unanimous agreement of the scholars.”

Among the things whose destruction carries no liability are: instruments of frivolous entertainment, the cross, wine vessels, and books that promote deviance, superstition, licentiousness, or debauchery. Aḥmad relates from Ibn ʿUmar that “the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, told him to fetch a knife. He then went out to the markets of Madinah, where casks of wine imported from Syria were on sale; he split them open in the Prophet’s presence, and the Prophet ordered his Companions to do likewise.” This hadith indicates that such items are to be destroyed and that no compensation is owed for them. Nevertheless, their destruction must occur by order and under the oversight of the authorities, in order to secure the public good and avert harm.