Comparing Christians to the Jews, it seems that Mohammed hated the Jews more. The Quran clearly states:
“Strongest among men in enmity to the believers wilt thou find theJews and Pagans; and nearest among them in love to the believers wilt thou find those who say, “We are Christians”: because amongst these are men devoted to learning and men who have renounced the world, and they are not arrogant.” Surah 5: 82
During his lifetime, Mohammed devoted much of his efforts to get rid of the Jews. He stated. “You (Jews) should know that the earth belongs to Allah and his apostle, and I want to expel you from this land (the Arabian Peninsula), so, if anyone owns property, he is permitted to sell it.” Al-Bukhari vol. 4:392
At that time, there were three Jewish tribes in Medina. Mohammed’s men besieged two of them, the Bani Qaynqa and the Bani-al-Nudair tribes. Their access to food supplies was blocked until they surrendered on Mohammed's terms. His terms for their lives to be spared were that they had to deposit all their belongings at a certain place for distribution among Muslims and then emigrate from Medina.
The third tribe, Bani Qurayza, was not as lucky. During the War of the Trench, Abu Sofyan led a siege against Mohammed’s forces. Afterward, it was alleged that Bani Qurayza agreed to provide help from within to Abu Sofyan's forces. The alleged help never materialized and the siege eventually ended. Nonetheless, Mohammed never forgave them for their willingness to help his enemies.
The Muslims turned against the Bani Qurayza tribe and blocked their streets for twenty-five days. Then the Jewish tribe expressed readiness to accept the surrender terms that had been afforded to the other two Jewish tribes. Their belongings were to be confiscated and they were to be granted safe conduct for their departure from the area10.
Mohammed, however, would not consent to this. Instead he appointed as an arbiter Saad iben Moaz, a man who was known to be on bad terms with Bani Qurayza. Saad ruled that all Bani Qurayza's men should be beheaded, that the women and children should be sold as slaves and that all their property should be divided among the Muslims. Trenches were dug in the bazaar of Medina for disposal of the eight to nine hundred Jewish bodies whom Mohammed and his men had spent the night slaughtering. (See Ibn Hisham: The Prophet's biography; vol. 2 pages 240 & 241).
2006-12-30
18:40:43
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