The imam may also subject anyone who openly manifests obstinacy to disciplinary discretionary punishment, but he may not go beyond this to killing or a fixed legal penalty, based on the words of the Prophet ﷺ: “The blood of a Muslim may not lawfully be shed except in one of three cases: disbelief after faith, adultery after having been married, and killing a person unlawfully.”
If this rebel faction withdraws from the people of justice and takes up residence in a territory distinct from theirs, the matter is considered. If they do not withhold any right or depart from obedience, they are not fought so long as they remain obedient and continue to render the rights owed.
A faction of the Kharijites once withdrew from ʿAlī, may Allah be pleased with him, at al-Nahrawān. He appointed a governor over them, and they remained obedient to him for some time, while ʿAlī maintained a truce with them, until they killed the governor. He sent word to them, “Hand over his killer.” They refused and said, “We all killed him.” He said, “Then surrender yourselves, and I will kill you.” He marched against them and killed most of them.
If this rebel faction refuses to obey the imam, withholds the rights they owe, and acts independently in collecting revenues and enforcing rulings, the matter is considered. If they do so without appointing an imam for themselves, the funds they collect are usurped property, and liability for them is not discharged. The rulings they enforce are to be rejected, and no right is established by them. But if they appoint an imam, collect funds by his order, and enforce rulings at his command, their rulings are not overturned, nor are the funds they collected reclaimed from them. They are fought until they return to obedience. Allah Most High says (49:9): “If two factions of the believers fight, make peace between them; but if one of them transgresses against the other, then fight the faction that transgresses until it returns to the command of Allah.”
If the imam appoints a commander to fight the rebels, he must first warn them and make the matter clear to them before fighting; he may not attack them by surprise. His aim in fighting them must be to restrain them, not deliberately to kill them, unlike the fighting of polytheists and apostates. They are fought when advancing, but pursuit is halted when they retreat, unlike the people of war and apostates. Their prisoners are not to be killed, whereas it is permissible to kill prisoners from among the people of war and the apostates.
The circumstances of those among them who are held captive must be considered. Whoever can safely be released without fear of his returning to fight is set free; whoever cannot safely be released is detained until the war comes to an end, after which he is released and not detained thereafter. Their property is not taken as spoils, nor are their children enslaved. Assistance in fighting them may not be sought from a treaty-bound polytheist or a dhimmi. Ahmad prohibited this even in fighting the people of war, so it is all the more prohibited in fighting rebels. A time-limited truce may not be made with them, nor may a pact be concluded with them in return for money. If he makes a truce with them for a specified period, it is not binding, and if