English

QCF V2

Mahmoud Khaleel Al-Husary

Ibn Kathir (Abridged)

Hasan Efendi Nahi

Imām Ibn al-Jawzī (d. 597/1201) summarized the scholars' opinions in his book "Zād al-Masīr" as follows:

1. Mujāhid and a group of jurists maintain that it is definitive and that fighting is permissible there only against those who initiate fighting. This is supported by the authentic hadith of the Prophet (ﷺ) in which he said during the conquest of Makkah: "O people! Allah made Makkah sacred the day He created the heavens and the earth. It has not been lawful for anyone before me, nor will it be lawful for anyone after me. It was only made lawful for me for an hour of a day, and it has returned to its sanctity until the Day of Resurrection." (Bukhārī & Muslim) Ibn al-Jawzī: this opinion is the most accurate.
2. It is abrogated: 2a. Qatādah held that it is abrogated by the verse "Then kill the polytheists wherever you find them" (9:5), which commands fighting them in any place and under all conditions. 2b. Al-Rabī‘ ibn Anas and Ibn Zayd considered it to be abrogated by the verse "Fight them until there is no more fitnah." 2c. Muqātil claimed it was abrogated by the verse "And kill them wherever you overtake them" (2:191).

Was the ruling "but do not fight them by the Sacred Mosque..." abrogated?

Imām Ibn al-Jawzī (d. 597/1201) summarized the scholars' opinions in his book "Zād al-Masīr" as follows:

1. It means polytheism [Ibn Masʿūd, Ibn ʿAbbās, Ibn ʿUmar, Qatādah] i.e. the polytheism of those people is worse than your killing of them in the Sacred Precinct.
2. It means to renege on Islam and return to idolatry [Mujāhid], i.e. the apostasy of a believer is worse for him than to be killed while following the truth.