Another example concerns the fighting during the great civil strife. The Companions were divided into three groups: one fought on one side, another fought on the other, and a third abstained. The jurists today hold two views: some favour fighting on ʿAlī’s side—as do most authors who write on fighting rebels—while others favour abstaining. The latter is the well-known position of the people of Medina and the scholars of hadith. The firmly established, authentic hadiths from the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, concerning this strife support the latter view. Hence, those who compile statements of the creed of Ahl al-Sunnah wa-l-Jamāʿah mention abstaining from fighting during civil strife and refraining from discussing the disputes that arose between the Companions.

The people of Medina nevertheless hold that those who depart from the Sharia, such as the Harūriyyah and others, should be fought. They distinguish this from fighting during civil strife. This is also the position of the jurists versed in hadith, and it accords with the Sunnah of the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, and that of his rightly guided caliphs. The hadith concerning the Khawārij is authentically reported from him through ten routes of transmission, which Muslim included in his Sahīh; al-Bukhārī also included some of them.

In it, he said:

“One of you would consider his own prayer insignificant compared with theirs, his fasting compared with theirs, and his recitation compared with theirs. They recite the Quran, but it does not go beyond their throats. They pass out of Islam as an arrow passes through its quarry. Wherever you encounter them, kill them, for whoever kills them will have a reward with Allah on the Day of Resurrection.”

It is also established that the Companions agreed on