2 – ʿAlqama narrated from Ibn Burayda, from his father, who said:

Whenever the Messenger of Allah ﷺ dispatched an army or a detachment, he would give its commander private counsel to fear Allah, Mighty and Exalted, and he would urge him to treat the Muslims under his command well. He would then say:

“Set out in the name of Allah, in the cause of Allah. Fight those who disbelieve in Allah. Do not embezzle the spoils, do not act treacherously, do not mutilate, and do not kill a child or an elderly man.

When you meet your enemy, invite them to Islam. If they refuse, then invite them to pay the jizya; if they still refuse, then fight them.

If you lay siege to the people of a fortress and they ask you to let them surrender under the judgment of Allah, do not agree, for you do not know what judgment Allah will pass concerning them. Rather, let them surrender to your own judgment, and thereafter decide their case as you see fit.

If they ask you for the covenant (dhimma) of Allah, give them your own covenants and the covenants of your forefathers, for forgoing your own covenant is lighter for you than forgoing the covenant of Allah that would rest upon your necks.”

In another narration he said: “If they ask you to grant them the covenant of Allah and the covenant of His Messenger, do not grant it; instead, give them your own covenants and those of your forefathers, for breaking your own covenants and those of your forefathers is easier.”