they set out, and when they reached al-Hadā, a place lying between ʿUsfān and Mecca, word of them reached a branch of the tribe of Hudhayl known as Banu Lihyān. Nearly one hundred archers rushed out after them, following their tracks. When ʿĀṣim and his companions sensed the pursuers, they withdrew to some high ground, where the enemy surrounded them and called out, “Come down and surrender; we pledge and covenant that not one of you will be killed.”
ʿĀṣim ibn Thābit replied, “People, as for me, I will never surrender under the guarantee of an unbeliever. O Allah, convey news of us to Your Prophet ﷺ.”
Thereupon they shot arrows at them and killed ʿĀṣim. Three men then came down on the strength of the pledge and covenant—Khubayb, Zayd ibn al-Dathina, and another companion. Once the enemy had them firmly in their grip, they pulled the bow-strings from their bows and bound the captives with them. The third man said, “This is the first act of treachery! By Allah, I will not go with you; I have an example in those who have already been killed.” They dragged him and tried to force him along, but he refused, so they killed him.
Khubayb and Zayd ibn al-Dathina were taken to Mecca, where they were sold after the Battle of Badr. The family of al-Hārith ibn ʿĀmir ibn Nawfal ibn ʿAbd Manāf bought Khubayb—it was Khubayb who had killed al-Hārith on the day of Badr. Khubayb remained their prisoner until they unanimously agreed to execute him. He borrowed a razor from one of al-Hārith’s daughters to remove excess hair, and she lent it to him. While she was distracted, her little son toddled over to Khubayb; she returned to find the child sitting on his thigh with the razor in his hand. Startled, she showed visible fear, which Khubayb noticed. He said, “Are you afraid I would kill him? I would never do such a thing.”
She later said, “By Allah, I never saw a prisoner better than Khubayb. One day I found him eating a cluster of grapes while he was shackled in iron chains, though no fruit could be found in Mecca. It was provision Allah had granted Khubayb.”
When they led him out of the Sacred Precinct to execute him in the open countryside, Khubayb said, “Allow me to pray…"