So between Badr and Uhud a number of small expiditions took place.

Each had its

own reasons and issues and benefits.
The first of these incidences was Karkara tul Qudr (after the place it took plac
e). Some of the neighbouring mushrik tribes of Madinah wanted to take revenge on
the muslims because their business of the caravans had been cut off. When the c
aravan of the Quraysh had to divert its route some of the smaller tribes that wo
uld normally get some business got nothing. Therefore only seven days after the
battle of Badr, some of the tribes Banu Saleem and the Gatafan (two very large t
ribes of Arabia - Gatafan was one of the largest) attached a small entourage of
200 people to attack Madinah. When the prophet PBUH heard this, he launched an o
ffensive against them. And when the pagans saw the muslims, they fled even thoug
h quanitity wise they were more. What's more they left all of their tents, belon
gings and animals. This was a huge surplus for them so much so its said every mu
slim who participated got two camels. It is also in this battle what happened wa
s when the prophet PBUH reached their vicinity, the first person they found was
a slave Yasar. So they captured him and he converted to Islam after a while. So
the sahabi who captured him, he said "Oh RasulAllah he is yours". And the prophe
t PBUH never kept a slave so he was freed. But Yasar remained with him as a serv
ant so Yasar became one of the servants of the prophet PBUH. As usual it was a s
unnah of the prophet PBUH he would camp at the place a battle happened after for
three days. In explaining why they fled he told the sahabah "I have been helped
by Allah that my enemies are terrified by me" this is one of the ways Allah hel
ped the prophet PBUH. That just by seeing and hearing the muslims they would run
away.
Second expidition was the Sareea of Saweeq, and this occured around 2/3 months a
fter Badr, early part in Dhul Hijjah. Abu Suffyan had made a promise to Allah th
at he would not take a bath until he avenged Badr. Even from janaaba! This shows
us taking a bath after janaaba was in their custom. So he remained in that filt
hy state for months. He gathered around 200 of the Quraysh and launched an offen
sive. The Banu Nadeer gave him protection, food, supplies and water. This is now
blatant trecheary because one of the conditions of the treaty is "you will not
help the Quraysh against us" and also "If we are attaked we will join". But the
Banu Nadeer hosted him and then Abu Suffyan launched an offensive into one of th
e gardens of Madinah. And he killed two ansar, burnt down the garden etc. This i
s blatant terrorism: when the muslims find out they attack the army of Abu Suffy
an and in the rush to flee, once again, the Quraysh left all their belongings. W
hat is Saweeq? It is dried porridge that the Quraysh made that could be eatan fo
r long periods of time. So when they saw the muslims coming, they fled on their
camels. In order to lighten the load, they cut off all the bags of Saweeq and so
the muslims were able to capture alot of this Saweeq and Abu Suffyan returned.
But now he could take a bath because he killed two ansaris.
Yet another incident that took place was the Sareea of Qarada. Recall Sareea mea
nt the prophet PBUH did not participate in this: a Gazwa is what the prophet PBU
H participated in, but Sareea is any expiditon he commanded but not participate
in. And there are 100s of Sareea as we mentioned. The Sareea of Qarada took plac
e a few months before Uhud. The Quraysh were preparing the annual caravan for th
e third year. Badr showed them they could not take the standard route. Safwan ib
n Ummayah was placed in charge of this caravan. He gathered the Quraysh and said
"Muhammad has blocked our passages; if we take the sea route, most of them have
already given their alliegance to Muhammad and are following their religion". T
his note shows clearly Islam was spreading rapidly. Note the madinah seerah is m
ostly battles; this type of sentence we extract much information, that is, Islam
is spreading so much so most of the coast line are on Islam. So he goes on "If
we remain here, we won't go on a journey, and our money will dwindle to nothing.
But our life depends on these cousins". One of the elders said "let us go throu
gh the Iraq passage". Note Iraq was eastwards, north east and then double back d
own towards Syria. This shows how much of a success Badr was. So they had to fin

d someone who knew the route which was unprecented. It would take them far east
of Madinah and double back to Syria. They loaded up this caravan and this time t
he leader was Safwan ibn Ummayah. So effectively it's Badr part II, the second y
ear after Badr. Allah had willed all the money went to the muslims.
The prophet PBUH heard of this even though it was meant to be top secret. How di
d he hear? One of the elite of the Quraysh was drinking wine with Saleet, who wa
s a muslim in Mecca. And he boasted "the Quraysh have a plan that no one will be
able to outsmart - we will take this route to get to Syria". As soon as Saleet
heard this he informed the prophet PBUH - and this is 100 camels fully of booty
etc. It's just a caravan NOT an army so its too good to be true and its very eas
y prey. So the prophet PBUH sent Zaid ibn Harithah to intercept the caravan. And
the entire caravan, with all of the camels, and 50,000 dirhams, plus the leathe
r, and ALL of the other goods came into the hands of the prophet PBUH. Allah had
prmoised back at Badr "I'll give you one of the two" but in fact Allah gave the
m BOTH. SubhanAllah when the muslims got what they didn't want, Allah gave them
what they wanted. And there were NO casualities. And this made the Quraysh so de
sperate it led to Uhud. Because now nothing is left.
One major incident left; one of the most contraversial, and that is the assassin
ation of Ka'b ibn al-Ashraf. It is sensitive and deserves special attention. Ka'
b ibn al-Ashraf was the son of an Arab father and jewish mother. His father was
a pure Arab, a pagan; and his mother was of the Banu Nadeer. His father had comm
ited murder so he had to flee from his own people, and so he fled and was adopte
d by the Banu Nadeer of Yathrib. And they allowed him to marry one of their wome
n, and from this marriage Ka'ab is born. He is thus a full Arab and full jew. An
d he was one of the leaders of the Banu Nadeer. He was known for many things
1. He was a very rich man - he had his own fortress
2. He was one of the most handsome people in Yathrib
3. He was known for his high level poetry
And his aminosity to Islam was demonstrated very early on. When the Qiblah was c
hanged it was Ka'ab who said "why did they change the Qiblah?" And Allah quotes
Ka'ab in the Quran (second juz first ayah). When the commandment for zakat was r
evealed, Ka'ab went to his friends who had converted from the Ansar, and he said
"do not give any of your money because I am worried you will become poor. And d
on't be hasty in getting rid of your wealth for you don't know what will happen
to this man". At this Allah revealed "those who are stingy, and command others t
o be stingy, and they hide of what Allah has given of His blessings". And many o
ther things are mentioned. At Badr, when the two criers came back, when Ka'ab he
ard the news he mockingly said "If Muhammad has really killed all of these peopl
e, and these are from the noble of Arabs, it's better to be dead than alive". An
d he effectively pronounced the verdict against himself. When the victory of Bad
r was manifested in front of Ka'ab, he undertook a small expidition against the
muslims. That Ka'ab and some of the Banu Nadeer went to Mecca and forms an allia
nce with Abu Suffyan against the prophet PBUH. Of course it was a suprise attack
/tactics. Abu Suffyan asked him "I ask you by Allah which of the two religions i
s closer or more beloved to Allah?" He is asking a monothiest here of course sin
ce Ka'ab was a jew. Remember the pagans felt an inferiority complex towards the
jews since they were a people of civilisation. And Ka'ab said "You are more righ
tly guided than them". Allah references this in the Quran that in Surah Nisa ver
se 50
"Look how they invent about Allah untruth, and sufficient is that as a manifest
sin.
Have you not seen those who were given a portion of the Scripture, who believe i

n superstition and false objects of worship and say about the disbelievers, "The
se are better guided than the believers as to the way"?"
Allah is quoting Ka'ab here. This is excatly what he said in the private convers
ation with Abu Suffyan. So he returns to Madinah after forming the secret allian
ce but of course Allah told him. On top of this he has written alot of poetry ag
ainst the muslims. The last straw however was when he started writing erotic and
vivid poetry against muslim ladies out of mockery. And it was specific and by n
ame. This is obviously crossing the line in all areas. According to Ibn Ishaaq,
Ibn Hishaam Ka'ab was assassinated between Badr and Uhud. But other scolars such
as As-Salihi who wrote a 12 volume book on seerah (one of the largest ever writ
ten) he was killed after Uhud. And all of them add one more reason which Ibn Ish
aaq didn't add, and that is the blatant assassination attempt against the prophe
t PBUH. We know the prophet PBUH was invited by the Banu Nadeer for a poison mea
l. This occured after Uhud but according to As-Salihi and others, this was spear
headed by Ka'ab. It was his idea to poison the food, and he was killed literally
12 hours before the battle of Banu Nadeer. According to those authorities. So i
f we follow that version of events its even more clear why Ka'ab needed to die.
But we will stick with ibn Ishaaq. Note As Salihi also said the "idea" of poisin
ing the food came from Ka'ab - so this can reconcile with ibn Ishaaq.
In any case the prophet PBUH stood up and said "who will take care of Ka'b ibn a
l-Ashraf because he has irritated Allah and His messenger". And so Muhammad ibn
Maslama stood up and said "I will do it". This sahabi was from the Aws. Note bef
ore Islam the Aws and Banu Nadeer had no problems with each other so someone all
ied with Ka'ab volunteered to save the potential of another civil war to come ba
ck. According to ibn Hishaam for three days after this Muhammad ibn Maslama stop
ped eating and drinking for he said "I promised you something but I realised I m
ight not be able to". Remember Ka'ab is a rich man, well guarded, has his own fo
rtress etc. The prophet PBUH said "just try" and so Muhammad ibn Maslama said in
that case "allow me to say things (I don't mean)" and so the prophet PBUH said
"say as you like".
Muhammad ibn Maslama then called upon Ka'ab and he went to his office; other peo
ple were there but he told Ka'ab "I have a very private matter to discuss". So t
hey went to a corner and Muhammad ibn Maslama told Ka'ab "this man has caused us
irritation; on top of that he is asking for our money; and he has put us throug
h so much trobule and hardship." When Ka'ab heard this he felt SO happy "walahi
this is just the beginning he will put you through much more hardship". And so t
hey continued talking in this manner. Until finally Muhammad ibn Maslama said "w
e are his followers and we cannot forsake him until the situation turns a little
. Until that time I need you to loan me to pay him that money (i.e. zakat)". Ka'
ab said "I will give you a loan but whats your mortgage?" i.e. he needs assuranc
e. And Ka'ab said "leave your wife with me" but Muhammad ibn Maslama said "No I
can't risk it etc". Ka'ab said "ok leave your sons with me" but Muhammad said "n
o this is a dishonour". Ka'ab said "ok what then?" Muhammad ibn Maslama said "wh
at if I bring you my weapons?" Ka'ab said "great idea bring your weapons". There
's a grey area as to what happened but it seems two of three other sahabah along
with Muhammad ibn Maslama also got loans/mortgages in exchange for weapons with
Ka'ab. They set a secret time and according to al Waaqidi it took place on 14th
Rabbi Awwal, 3rd year of the Hijrah. This is line with ibn Ishaaq who is an aut
hority thus academically it seems closer to the truth Ka'ab was killed before Uh
ud. The prophet PBUH walked with them to Baqee ul Gargat and said "may Allah hel
p you on your mission". So they went to Ka'abs castle which was on the outskirt
of Madinah and called upon Ka'ab to come outside. It's said he just newly marrie
d to another wife, and he was lying in his bed when he heard the call. And he to
ld his new wife he is doing some dealings outside but she said "why are they com
ing at this time? This is not right - you are a man at war, and I am worried for
you". But he said "No Abu Naela is my foster brother and Muhammad ibn Maslama I
know for a long time - I trust them both". So he dragged himself off of her.

Muhammad ibn Maslama already planned to grab Ka'ab and then the others would do
the deed. So they met outside, and note Ka'ab was wearing very expensive and hea
vy armour as was the tradition. So Abu Naela said "I smell the sweetest perfume"
and he said "yes I have a young lady who is the most scented of the women of Ar
abia". So he said "allow me to smell it - oh it's coming from your hair let me s
mell it". So Ka'ab lowered his head and at this point he held on to him, and the
other did the deed. But it wasn't easy, and it's said one of them al Harith was
severely wounded by the others who were attacking. When the prophet PBUH met th
em he put his saliva on the wound and its said it is healed instantly.
Now this is an authentic narration - it's mentioned in Bhukari, ibn Ishaaq etc.
Regarding this incident the charge is given its a blatant assassination attempt
by the prophet PBUH. Sahih al Bhukari has a whole chapter on the killing of Ka'a
b ibn al Ashraf. If you deny this you will deny the whole seerah. A number of re
asons are given as to why the assassination took place.
1. Main reason is the treaty he did with Abu Suffyan. This was clear treachory,
violating the constitution and was a clear threat to the muslims.
2. The poetry against the muslims and specifically the muslim ladies.
3. The direct attempt to assassinate the prophet PBUH (following As-Salihi and o
thers).
And of course these reasons are very solid. The problem comes not that he wasn't
a criminal - but in the manner with which it was done. Technically in modern da
ys there would be a trial, judge etc. Note we are judging the political situatio
n in the time of the prophet PBUH with our time. We are retrospectivally looking
at those days with our laws. This is a wrong premise. You cannot do this. We go
back to the phrase of his wife "you are a man at war" - even though he himself
did not fight the muslims or anything. She understood what the husband is doing
is declaring war. And she understood he was not safe. The political landscape an
d customs at the time were very different. Thus to justify in light of our laws
is not needed. At that time the prophet PBUH is basically the government of Isla
m. His decree is political and islamic all in wrong. Thus it is legal for him to
do this because he is the judge. He didn't do it in Mecca when he didn't have a
ny authority - rather he did when he himself has actual political power. Thus we
shouldn't try to sugar coat it. That time and place - its justified. The main p
oint is that the reason he was killed was not because he rejected Islam or ridic
uled the muslims; but rather his political actions against the muslims when he a
llianced with Abu Suffyan.
And by the way, bombing children and innocents with drones which is completely o
pen policy and legal in USA is "completely fine". But people make a big thing ab
out this one assassination and say its completely wrong. They have no right to c
riticise. This is complete double standards and hypocrisy. The fact is at the ti
me this was a legitimate thing to do and thats all it was.
The Banu Qaynuqa threatened the prophet PBUH directly to himself. Then you have
the Banu Nadeer already helping Abu Suffyan - thus we can see a progessive retal
iation against the muslims and the prophet PBUH. Note also did Ka'ab directly he
lp Abu Suffyan attacking Madinah? It makes sense if so - maybe it was Ka'ab hims
elf who helped and then a few weeks later he goes to Abu Suffyan to form a real
alliance.
To summarise the incident needs to be told as it was - it was a political incide
nt. It was in accordance with norms and political understanding of the times, an
d it was done because Ka'ab was a genuine threat - he had gone above and beyond
merely rejecting Islam, he formed an alliance with the Quraysh violating the con

stitution. And the peotry he wrote was so revolting that simply crossed the line
. For him to go these levels, he knows what he got involved with. His new wife u
nderstood the risks and thus we have no issues in saying this is what happened.
NON ISLAMIC Source: Norman Arthur Stillman is a renowned historian who specializ
es in the intersection of Jewish and Islamic culture and history. In the last fe
w years, Stillman has been the executive editor of the Encyclopedia of Jews in t
he Islamic World,[1] a project that includes over 2000 entries in 5 volumes. Wha
t did he say regarding this incident? According to Stillman, Muhammad was acting
in complete accordance with the norms of the Arab society of that period which
demanded retaliation for a slight to a group's honor. This is coming from the hi
ghest possible academic!
Note whatever the prophet PBUH whether it was commanded or not, Allah indirectly
approves. In the end it is from Allah.
The books of seerah mention the other tribes all complained about this but the p
rophet PBUH did not take or listen to the complaints. The message was very clear
: not a single tribe felt safe after this. And this was one of the main messages
of the act that "you cannot get away with blatant treason".