the land-tax; he set food before him and gave him a drink made of honey, whereupon al-Ashtar died from it. When the news reached Muʿāwiyah, ʿAmr, and the people of Syria they said, “Indeed, Allah has hosts made of honey.”

Ibn Jarīr records in his History (1) that Muʿāwiyah had previously instructed this man to devise a stratagem to kill al-Ashtar (2), promising him certain rewards, and that he carried it out. This report, however, requires examination; even if it were sound, Muʿāwiyah would have deemed killing al-Ashtar permissible because he was among those who slew ʿUthmān (may Allah be pleased with him).

In any case, Muʿāwiyah and the Syrians rejoiced greatly at the death of al-Ashtar al-Nakhaʿī (3). When ʿAlī received the news, he grieved over the man’s courage and service, and he wrote to Muḥammad ibn Abī Bakr, instructing him to remain settled and steadfast in Egypt. Yet Muḥammad’s resolve weakened, especially in the face of opposition from the Uthmānīs who were in a devastated district (4). Their influence had grown after ʿAlī withdrew from Ṣiffīn, after the arbitration unfolded as it did, and after the Iraqis recoiled from fighting the Syrians. The Syrians, once the arbitration concluded at Dūmat al-Jandal (5), had pledged allegiance to Muʿāwiyah as caliph, and their power became very strong indeed.

At that juncture Muʿāwiyah assembled his commanders: ʿAmr ibn al-ʿĀṣ, Shuraḥbīl ibn al-Simṭ, [Ḥabīb ibn Maslama], ʿAbd al-Raḥmān ibn Khālid ibn al-Walīd, al-Ḍaḥḥāk ibn Qays, Busr ibn Abī Arṭātah, Abū al-Aʿwar al-Sulamī, Ḥamzah ibn Sinān al-Hamdānī, and others. He consulted them about marching to Egypt, and they agreed, saying, “Advance wherever you wish; we are with you.” Muʿāwiyah designated ʿAmr ibn al-ʿĀṣ to be governor of the province once he (6) had conquered it, and ʿAmr was delighted.

He then said to Muʿāwiyah, “In my opinion you should send men under a trustworthy commander skilled in warfare (7), for there are people there loyal to ʿUthmān who will assist him in fighting their opponents.” Muʿāwiyah replied, “Rather, I think we should write to our supporters there, informing them that our forces (8) are on their way, and send another letter to our adversaries inviting them to reconciliation.”

Muʿāwiyah (9) [said to ʿAmr ibn al-ʿĀṣ]: “O ʿAmr, haste has been blessed for you, while deliberation has been blessed for me.” ʿAmr answered, “Do as Allah shows you, for, by Allah, your affair and theirs will inevitably lead to all-out war.”

Thereupon Muʿāwiyah wrote to Maslama ibn Mukhlad al-Anṣārī and to Muʿāwiyah ibn Khudayj al-Sukūnī—the two chiefs of the Uthmānīs in Egypt, who had neither pledged allegiance to ʿAlī nor obeyed the orders of his deputies there, numbering about ten thousand—informing them that the army would arrive shortly. He sent the letter with a freedman of his named Sabiʿ. When the letter reached Maslama