al-Maʿrifah (2/296–297), through the same chain. Both of them narrated it—the wording being Yaʿqūb’s. Through his chain, Ibn ʿAsākir also transmitted it in al-Tārīkh (1/528): ʿAbd Allāh ibn Yūsuf narrated to us; Yaḥyā ibn Ḥamzah narrated to us; Abū ʿAlqamah Naṣr ibn ʿAlqamah al-Ḥaḍramī, one of the people of Homs, related to me that ʿUmayr ibn al-Aswad and Kathīr ibn Murrah al-Ḥaḍramī said: “Abū Hurayrah and Ibn al-Simt used to say: ‘There will continue to be Muslims on earth until the Hour is established. This is because the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, said: …’” And he then cited it.

I say: This is an authentic chain of transmission; all its narrators are trustworthy, including Naṣr ibn ʿAlqamah, as I explained in the preceding hadith.

Other hadiths have been reported concerning the people of Syria and their being the victorious group, but their chains contain weakness. I had referred to them in al-Ḍaʿīfah under hadith 6104. Then I came across this report and hastened to include it here because its chain of transmission is authentic.

Know that Syria denotes the northern region of the Arabian Peninsula, encompassing Syria—including Antioch—Jordan, and Palestine as far as Ashkelon, as stated in Muʿjam al-Buldān.

3426—“Indeed, Allah does not love this man or those of his kind (1): they twist their tongues in speaking to people as a cow twists its tongue while grazing. Likewise, Allah will twist their tongues and faces in the Fire.”

Al-Ṭabarānī transmitted it in al-Muʿjam al-Kabīr (22/70/170) through Abū Mushir and Hishām ibn ʿAmmār, who said: Ṣadaqah ibn Khālid narrated to us; Zayd ibn Wāqid related to me, from Busr ibn ʿUbayd Allāh, from Wāthilah ibn al-Asqaʿ, who said: