The scholars also differed over how the Prophet ﷺ entered Mecca: was it through a peace settlement (ṣulḥ) or by force (ʿanwatan)?

The majority—including the two Imams, Abū Ḥanīfah and, in the well-known view from him, Aḥmad—held that it was by force.
Al-Shāfiʿī, however, maintained that the city was opened by treaty. He and those who followed him reasoned that, had it been taken by force, the Prophet ﷺ would have divided it among the conquerors as he had done with Khaybar; the victors would then have owned its houses and been more entitled to them than their previous occupants, and the townspeople would not have been granted safety.

The majority cited in reply the Prophet’s ﷺ words: “Allah made it lawful for Me only for one hour of the day,” and his statement: “If anyone claims that fighting the Messenger of Allah ﷺ is permissible, then say, ‘Allah gave permission to His Messenger, but He has not given it to you.’”

They also pointed out that the Prophet ﷺ entered the city in a state of war and full military formation: he assigned the army a right wing, a left wing, a vanguard, a rearguard, and a centre; he advanced wearing a mail coif, not in a state of consecration, and fighting broke out between Khālid ibn al-Walīd and the Meccans, during which a number of them were killed.

He ﷺ said to the Anṣār, “Do you see those rabble of Quraysh and their followers? Cut them down wholesale,” until Abū Sufyān exclaimed, “Messenger of Allah, the green land of Quraysh has been laid open—there will be no Quraysh after today!” The Prophet then proclaimed, “Whoever closes his door is safe,” along with other clear and sound proofs.

The majority answered the objections of the opposing side as follows:

1. As for the Prophet ﷺ not distributing the land itself among the victors, land is not part of the spoils that are divided. This was the practice of the Rightly Guided Caliphs with lands taken by force: they did not apportion them but made them fayʾ for the benefit of all Muslims, the first of them and the last.

2. Moreover, the Prophet ﷺ showed clemency to the people of Mecca by granting them safety, and that safety included leaving in their hands what they already possessed.

There is, nevertheless, a scholarly debate over whether the private plots and dwellings of Mecca may be owned at all. Many scholars favoured the view that they cannot be owned and that Muslims stand equal therein, as in the case of mosques.

As for the Prophet’s ﷺ granting the Meccans safety, this came after the fighting. He bestowed it upon them because they were the neighbours of Allah’s House; once they realised they lacked the strength to continue fighting, they requested amnesty, and he granted it out of kindness and mercy toward them.