the Muslims from obtaining this.

Muslim also narrated from Jabir: “Soon, no qafiz measure will be collected for them”—and he then mentioned the hadith. Al-Nawawi said:

“This has indeed occurred in our time in Iraq, and it is still occurring now.

“It has also been said that they will apostatize at the end of time and thus withhold the zakah and other dues that had become binding upon them.

“And it has been said that, at the end of time, the disbelievers liable to pay the jizyah will grow stronger and refuse to pay the jizyah, land tax, and other such payments that they had previously been rendering.”

I say: This meaning is the apparent one immediately conveyed by the word “withholding.” The first meaning, by contrast, is very far removed from it, since if someone embraces Islam and the jizyah is thereby waived from him, it is not correct to say of him that he has refused to render what was due from him, as is plainly evident.

What prompted me to document this hadith, explain that its portion attributed to the Companion has the ruling of a report attributed to the Prophet, and clarify its meaning was that some people today imagined that this hadith was connected to the indiscriminate tribulation that befell the Muslims as a result of the Iraqi army’s invasion of the State of Kuwait, and the land, sea, and air blockade imposed upon Iraq to prevent provisions and supplies from reaching it from countries at peace with it.

Accordingly, many questions were asked about this hadith on that occasion: Does it have any connection to this blockade of Iraq?

I answered in the negative and explained its meaning to them along the lines of what has preceded from Imam al-Nawawi, may Allah have mercy on him.

I wrote this on Wednesday afternoon, 1 Safar 1411 AH. May Allah protect the Muslims from the evil of tribulations, both manifest and hidden.