person, to show compassion towards Allah’s creation, to call them to Allah and His religion, and to protect them from the devils among humans and jinn. We ask Allah to help the king pursue what is truly in his best interest in Allah’s sight, to choose for him the words that are best for him in Allah’s sight, and to grant him a good end. Praise be to Allah, Lord of all worlds. May His blessings be upon His messengers, especially Muhammad, the last of the prophets and messengers, and may peace be upon them all.
He was asked:
Is Medina part of al-Shām (Greater Syria)?
He answered:
The Prophet’s city—may Allah bless him and grant him peace—is part of the Hijaz, by the agreement of the scholars. No one, Muslim or otherwise, has said that the Prophet’s city is part of al-Shām. Only someone ignorant of the boundaries of al-Shām and the Hijaz, and ignorant of what the jurists, linguists and others have said, would make such a claim.
However, people do say, “Medina is Syrian and Mecca is Yemeni,” meaning that Medina is closer to al-Shām and Mecca is closer to Yemen. Mecca is not part of Yemen, nor is Medina part of al-Shām.
During his final illness, the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, commanded that the Jews and Christians leave the Arabian Peninsula—which is the Hijaz—so they were expelled by ʿUmar