It is said that they concealed the graves of “Alī,” “Mu‘āwiya,” and “Amr” out of fear that the Khārijites would attack them. For this reason, they buried Mu‘āwiya inside the southern wall of the congregational mosque, in the governor’s palace known as al-Khadrā’. This is what ordinary people call the grave of “Hūd.” Yet the scholars agree that Hūd never came to Damascus. Rather, his grave is in Yemen, where he was sent as a prophet; it is also said to be in Mecca, to which he migrated. No one has said that it is in Damascus.

As for the “Mu‘āwiya” buried outside “Bāb al-Saghīr,” he is Mu‘āwiya ibn Yazīd, who ruled for about forty days and was known for asceticism and religious devotion. Alī was buried there, but the traces of his grave disappeared, which is why its location is not apparent. As for the shrine at Najaf, those with knowledge agree that it is not Alī’s grave. Rather, it has been said to be the grave of al-Mughīra ibn Shu‘ba. For more than three hundred years, no one identified it as Alī’s grave or visited it, despite the large numbers of Muslims—members of the Prophet’s household, Shia, and others—and their rule in Kufa. It was only made into a shrine during the reign of the non-Arab Banū Buwayh, more than three hundred years after Alī’s death. They related a story claiming that al-Rashīd used to visit that place, along with other accounts that establish no proof.

As for the question about members of the Prophet’s household being taken captive and made to ride camels until the camels grew two humps—these being the bukht camels—so that they could conceal themselves in this way, this is among the most disgraceful and obvious lies. It is among the fabrications of the heretics