Minhaj as-Sunnah - Ibn Taimiya - (6/280)

Minhaj as-SunnahIbn Taimiya

If al-Hurmuzān was among those who assisted in killing Umar, then, according to one of the two views, he could lawfully be put to death in retaliation. It was Umar himself who said concerning the man killed in Sana'a:

“If all the people of Sana'a had conspired against him, I would have had them all executed in retaliation for him.”

People have also disagreed concerning the killing of rulers: is their killer to be put to death as a prescribed punishment or in retaliation? There are two views on this in the school of Ahmad and elsewhere.

One view is that their killers are put to death as a prescribed punishment, just as a killer who engages in armed violence is put to death as a prescribed punishment. This is because killing rulers causes widespread corruption greater than that caused by highway robbers. Their killer is therefore one who wages war against Allah and His Messenger and strives to spread corruption in the land. On this basis, they construed the action of al-Hasan ibn Ali—may Allah be pleased with them both—when he killed Ibn Muljam, the killer of Ali, and likewise the execution of Uthmān’s killers.

If al-Hurmuzān was among those who assisted in killing Umar, he was among those who spread corruption in the land and wage war, and therefore had to be put to death. Even if it were assumed that the slain person’s [blood] was inviolable and that killing him was forbidden (1), [but] (2) the killer had acted on an interpretation, believing (3) it permissible to kill him because of an apparent cause for doubt, that doubt would avert execution from the killer. Similarly, when Usāma ibn Zayd killed [that] (4) man after he had said, “There is no deity except Allah,” believing that this declaration did not protect him, the Prophet—may Allah bless him and grant him peace—disciplined him verbally but did not put him to death, because he had acted on an interpretation. The man whom Usāma killed, however, had been lawful to kill before that point, and Usāma was uncertain whether the declaration afforded him protection.

(1) N and M read: “Even if it were assumed that the less meritorious person was inviolable, it would be forbidden to kill him” (M: “his killing would be forbidden”). H and R read: “And if it were assumed that the slain person’s blood was inviolable, nevertheless it would be forbidden to kill him.” (2) “Nevertheless” occurs only in B. (3) B reads: “and believes.” (4) “That” is absent from N and M.

وَإِذَا كَانَ الْهُرْمُزَانُ مِمَّنْ أَعَانَ عَلَى قَتْلِ عُمَرَ جَازَ قَتْلُهُ فِي أَحَدِ الْقَوْلَيْنِ قِصَاصًا. وَعُمَرُ هُوَ الْقَائِلُ فِي الْمَقْتُولِ بِصَنْعَاءَ: " لَوْ تَمَالَأَ عَلَيْهِ أَهْلُ صَنْعَاءَ لَأَقَدْتُهُمْ بِهِ " . وَأَيْضًا فَقَدْ تَنَازَعَ النَّاسُ فِي قَتْلِ الْأَئِمَّةِ: هَلْ يُقْتَلُ قَاتِلُهُمْ حَدًّا أَوْ قِصَاصًا؟ عَلَى قَوْلَيْنِ فِي مَذْهَبِ أَحْمَدَ وَغَيْرِهِ. أَحَدُهُمَا: أَنَّهُمْ يُقْتَلُونَ حَدًّا، كَمَا يُقْتَلُ الْقَاتِلُ فِي الْمُحَارَبَةِ حَدًّا، لِأَنَّ قَتْلَ الْأَئِمَّةِ فِيهِ فَسَادٌ عَامٌّ أَعْظَمُ مِنْ فَسَادِ قُطَّاعِ الطَّرِيقِ، فَكَانَ قَاتِلُهُمْ مُحَارِبًا لِلَّهِ وَرَسُولِهِ، سَاعِيًا فِي الْأَرْضِ فَسَادًا. وَعَلَى هَذَا خَرَّجُوا فِعْلَ الْحَسَنِ بْنِ عَلِيٍّ - رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهُمَا - لَمَّا قَتَلَ ابْنَ مُلْجَمٍ قَاتِلَ عَلِيٍّ، وَكَذَلِكَ قَتْلُ قَتَلَةِ عُثْمَانَ. وَإِذَا كَانَ الْهُرْمُزَانُ مِمَّنْ أَعَانَ عَلَى قَتْلِ عُمَرَ كَانَ مِنَ الْمُفْسِدِينَ فِي الْأَرْضِ الْمُحَارِبِينَ، فَيَجِبُ قَتْلُهُ لِذَلِكَ. وَلَوْ قُدِّرَ أَنَّ الْمَقْتُولَ مَعْصُومُ [الدَّمِ] يَحْرُمُ قَتْلُهُ (١) ، [لَكِنْ] (٢) كَانَ الْقَاتِلُ مُتَأَوِّلًا يَعْتَقِدُ (٣) حِلَّ قَتْلِهِ لِشُبْهَةٍ ظَاهِرَةٍ، صَارَ ذَلِكَ شُبْهَةً تَدْرَأُ الْقَتْلَ عَنِ الْقَاتِلِ. كَمَا أَنَّ أُسَامَةَ بْنَ زَيْدٍ لَمَّا قَتَلَ [ذَلِكَ] (٤) الرَّجُلَ بَعْدَمَا قَالَ: لَا إِلَهَ إِلَّا اللَّهُ، وَاعْتَقَدَ أَنَّ هَذَا الْقَوْلَ لَا يَعْصِمُهُ، عَزَّرَهُ النَّبِيُّ - صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ - بِالْكَلَامِ، وَلَمْ يَقْتُلْهُ لِأَنَّهُ كَانَ مُتَأَوِّلًا، لَكِنَّ الَّذِي قَتَلَهُ أُسَامَةُ كَانَ مُبَاحًا قَبْلَ الْقَتْلِ، فَشَكَّ فِي الْعَاصِمِ.

(١) ن، م: وَلَوْ قُدِّرَ أَنَّ الْمَفْضُولَ مَعْصُومٌ يَحْرُمُ، (م: مُحَرَّمٌ) ، قَتْلُهُ، ح، ر: وَإِنْ قُدِّرَ أَنَّ الْمَقْتُولَ مَعْصُومُ الدَّمِ لَكِنَّ قَتْلَهُ يَحْرُمُ. (٢) لَكِنْ: فِي (ب) فَقَطْ. (٣) ب: وَيَعْتَقِدُ. (٤) ذَلِكَ: لَيْسَتْ فِي (ن) ، (م) .