but that is not the case. Rather, if they pay jizyah, they are not fought. Nevertheless, they are either fought or become Muslims, for they will not pay jizyah without fighting: they possess great military strength, and it is not permissible to conclude a truce with them without jizyah.

It is well known that these people were fought during the caliphates of Abū Bakr and ‘Umar—and indeed ‘Uthmān—and that jizyah was imposed upon the people of Syria, Iraq, and the Maghrib. The greatest and fiercest fighting against these people therefore took place during their caliphates.

The Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, did not fight them during the expedition to Tabūk. At the battle of Mu’tah, they gained the upper hand over the Muslims. Zayd, Ja‘far, and ‘Abd Allāh ibn Rawāhah were killed, and Khālid took up the standard; the most the Muslims achieved was to escape alive.

Allah has told us that we will fight them or they will embrace Islam. This describes what occurred under the three Rightly Guided Caliphs. It is therefore impossible for the verse to apply exclusively to the battle of Mu’tah while excluding the Muslims’ fighting during the conquests of Syria, Iraq, the Maghrib, Egypt, and Khurāsān. These were the campaigns through which Allah made Islam prevail, and through which guidance and the religion of truth prevailed throughout the eastern and western lands.

It may, however, be objected:

The position of Ahl al-Sunnah is that military campaigns are to be undertaken under every ruler who calls for them, whether righteous or wicked. This verse therefore indicates that jihad is obligatory under every ruler (1) who calls people to it, since nothing in it indicates that the one issuing the call is a just imam.

The response is:

This supports Ahl al-Sunnah, for the Rāfidah hold that jihad may only be undertaken under an imam (2) who is infallible, and they regard none of the Companions as infallible except ‘Alī. Thus, this verse