out of obedience to you; rather, I slew him to avenge a blood-feud ⦗1⦘ I had with him ⦗2⦘. He had once appointed me to an office, then dismissed me from it and disgraced me.
They say that when Muṣʿab’s head was set before ʿAbd al-Malik, he remarked, “Long companionship bound Muṣʿab and me, and he was among the dearest of people to me; yet kingship is barren.”
It is also reported that after Muṣʿab’s troops scattered, his son ʿĪsā said to him, “If you would take refuge in one of the forts and write to men far from you—such as al-Muhallab ibn Abī Ṣufra and others—they would come. Once you have from them what you need, then meet the enemy, for you have grown very weak.” Muṣʿab gave no answer, but he recalled what befell al-Ḥusayn ibn ʿAlī—how he died nobly without surrender—and how he found no loyalty among the people of Iraq, nor had his father or his brother. “Nor,” he added, “have we ever found them faithful.” His followers then broke and fled, leaving him with only a few intimates, while all the rest turned to ʿAbd al-Malik.
Now ʿAbd al-Malik loved Muṣʿab deeply and had been his close friend before the caliphate. He therefore said to his brother Muḥammad, “Go to him and guarantee his safety.” Muḥammad came and said, “O Muṣʿab, your cousin has granted you safe-conduct for your life, your son, your wealth, and your family. Go wherever you wish. Had he intended you harm, it would already have overtaken you. I beseech you by Allah, preserve yourself.”
Muṣʿab replied, “The matter is settled. A man such as I does not quit a field like this except as victor or vanquished.” His son ʿĪsā then advanced and fought.
Muḥammad ibn Marwān said, “Nephew, do not throw away your life,” repeating what has been mentioned above. But ʿĪsā fought on until he was killed—may Allah have mercy on him—and the others who fell after him have likewise been noted.
The narrator continues: When Muṣʿab’s head was placed before ʿAbd al-Malik, the caliph wept and said, “By Allah, I could not have endured an hour without him for the love I bore him—until the sword came between us. Yet kingship is barren. Affection and honour between us were long-standing; when will women ever give birth to another like Muṣʿab?” He then ordered that Muṣʿab, his son, and Ibrāhīm ibn al-Ashṭar be shrouded and buried at Maskin near Kūfa. ⦗3⦘
Al-Madāʾinī states that Muṣʿab ibn al-Zubayr was killed on Tuesday, the thirteenth of either Jumādā al-Ūlā or Jumādā al-Ākhirā in the year 71 AH, according to most authorities. ⦗4⦘ He also held that it occurred in 72 AH; Allah knows best.
They further relate ⦗5⦘ that after Muṣʿab was killed, ʿAbd al-Malik marched to Kūfa and encamped at al-Nukhayla. Delegations of tribal leaders and Arab nobles came to him, and he addressed them with eloquence, clarity, and apt poetic citations. The people of Iraq pledged allegiance to him; he distributed provincial governorships, appointing Qaṭn ibn ʿAbd Allah al-Ḥārithī over Kūfa for forty days before removing him and placing his brother Bishr ibn Marwān in charge of the city.