The Islamic Personality by Sheikh Taqīuddīn An-Nabahānī

War policy is taking care of the affairs of war upon the position of its matter so as to make the victory for Muslims and defeat for their enemies. The immediate practical aspect is apparent in it. The Shar’a allowed within war things it forbade in other than it, and forbade things within it that it allowed in other than it. It allowed within it lying to the enemy whereas this is forbidden in other than war. In this way, it made for the war policy rules considered specific to war. From these considerations are those related with regards to dealing with the enemy. Of these is what is related to the actions of war itself, others are related to the Islamic army and others related to other than these.

Among what is related to dealing with the enemy, Islam ordained for the Khalifah and Muslims to do with the enemy similar to what the enemy did to the Muslims and permit upon the enemy similar to what the enemy allowed upon the Muslims, even if it were from the forbidden things. Allah (swt) said:

It is narrated that the cause for the revelation of this ayah is that the polytheists mutilated Muslims on the day of Uhud; they slit open their stomachs, cut their private parts and slit the tips of their noses. They did not leave anyone without mutilating him except Handhala bin Ar-Rahib. The Messenger of Allah (saw) stood over Hamza who had been mutilated, and he was an evil sight as his stomach had been split and his nose cut so he said:

So this ayah was revealed. The ayat was revealed in war, and even though it prohibits excess in mutilation nevertheless it is explicit in allowing Muslims to do similar to what the disbelievers did to them. It is even understood from the ayah the permissibility of mutilated those killed among the disbelievers who mutilated those killed among the Muslims, except that it is not exceeded in mutilation what they did although mutilation is haram and there came news regarding that. However, the Muslims can do it if disbelievers mutilated those killed among the Muslims. Similar to this is deceit and breaking the covenant if the enemy does that or it is feared from him that he will do it, then it is allowed for us to do it. Otherwise it is not allowed for us to do it. It is allowed for us to do this even though there are prohibitions about it according to the war policy since its prohibition is only where the enemy has not done it. If they do it, it is allowed for Muslims to do it. Allah (swt) said:

Accordingly it is allowed for Muslims to use nuclear weapons in their war with the enemy, even if this was before the enemy used them against them (Muslims) as all States permit the use of nuclear weapons in war. So it is allowed to use them although it is forbidden to use nuclear weapons since they destroy humanity whereas jihad is to revive humanity with Islam and not to exterminate humanity.

Of what is related to actions of war is that Muslims can burn the trees of disbelievers, their food, farms, and homes and destroy them. Allah (swt) said:

The Messenger of Allah (saw) did burn the palm-trees together with his realization that it would be interpreted against him. As for what is narrated by Yahya bin Said Al-Ansar that Abu Bakr As-Siddiq (ra) said to the army leader he sent to Sham:

Upon which all the Sahabah consented without any one disputing this, this is the origin in war which is not spoiling habitation or cutting trees. However, if the Khalifah or army leader views that gaining the battle necessitates him destroying habitation or cutting trees, or hastening to gain the battle requires this, then it is allowed in war policy to cut trees and destroy habitation as did the Messenger of Allah (saw). Similar to this is killing and burning cattle, and all that the enemy possesses; if the war policy requires this, then he may do it even if it was forbidden. Allah (swt) said:

This speech is general in everything and there is no other evidence what would bind or specify this ayah in its essence, whether any other ayah or hadith, so it remains in its generality. There came authenticated ahadith about the permissibility of burning houses, and burning and cutting trees. It has been narrated from ibn Umar:

Upon this Hasan said It was easy for the nobles of Quraish to burn Buwaira whose sparks were flying in all directions, And upon this the ayah was revealed:

It is narrated from Jareer bin Abdullah who said: The Messenger of Allah (saw) said:

And “barraka” means prayed for blessing for them. And Ahmad, Abu Dawud and ibn Majah narrated from Usamah bin Zayd who said:

This Ibni is the Yubna of Palestine. It also appears in the testament of Umar (ra) narrated by Malik in Al-Muwatta and its comparision with these ahadith that burning and cutting of trees, and the destruction of homes is only where the battle or war requires this. So it enters into the war policy. Of what relates to the Islamic army is that the Imam or army leader can prevent the hypocrites, transgressors, those put to flight, agitators and their like from going to the battlefield due to Allah’s statement:

Although the Imam does not prevent the hypocrite or transgressor from participating within it. However, if the war policy requires preventing them from going to battle or undertaking or supervising a specific action, it is allowed for the Khalifah and the army leader to do so. As for what is related to other than dealing with the enemy, the actions of war or the Islamic army, this is what occurred with the Messenger (saw) in his return from the battle of Banu Mustaliq. He returned with the Muslims in surpassing haste. He would walk during the night and day to his utmost effort until he reached Madinah. He exhausted the Islamic army even though the rule is being easy with the army. From Jabir who said:

However the war policy in relation to what Abdullah bin ‘Ubayy bin Salul was doing of creating strife between Muslims, the Muhajireen and Ansar, necessitated not travelling according to the travel of the weakest of the army but travelling the travel of their strongest so as not to leave a place for discussion or debate.

In such manner the war policy requires that the Imam undertake the actions required to take care of the affairs of war so as to gain victory in the battle or war and defeat for the enemy. However, this is restricted to where no text came upon a specific action; if there exists a specific text, it is not allowed to perform this action under the pretext of war policy. Rather it is obliged that one restricts (himself) to the text according to the context in which it came. If the text came in a definite form without reason (illah), then it is not allowed to undertake the action; if the text came with an (illah) reason, then the text is followed according to the reason. If the text came with a prohibition, and it came that the Messenger (saw) did it in specific circumstances, then one cannot undertake the action except in those circumstances. There came texts about actions which the Shar’a prevented so the prevention is followed according to what came. Nor should one say the war policy (allows it) because the war policy is general except where there came a text excluding a matter for the generality so the text is followed in what is specified by it. Ahmad narrated from Safwan bin ‘Asal who said: The Messenger of Allah (saw) sent us in an expedition and said:

Al-Bukhari narrated from ibn Umar who said:

And Ahmad narrated from Al-Aswad bin Sar’i who said: The Messenger of Allah (saw) said:

Abu Dawud narrated from Anas that the Messenger of Allah (saw) said:

These ahadith prohibited specific actions in war so it is not correct that they be done in war under the pretext of Messenger of Allah (saw); rather they are only done in the way the texts came. There came texts that allowed doing all these matters by shooting cannons and bombshells, and all that strikes from afar with something heavy even if women and children are killed if it is not possible to reach the disbelievers except by killing them due to their mixing with them. Al Bukhari narrated from As-S’ab bin Jithama

“That the Messenger of Allah (saw) was asked about the people taking shelter among the polytheists and their women and children, if they are struck. He said: They are of them.”

At-Tabarani extracted from Thawr bin Yazid

When the catapult is fired, it does not distinguish between women, children, trees etc which indicates that heavy weapons such as cannons and bombshells when used in war then it is allowed to kill, destroy and spoil everything by them. Similarly if it is not possible to reach the disbelievers except by killing women and children; if they are struck due to their mixing with them, killing them is allowed. As for doing each one of these matters alone without the catapult or other than the situation of not being possible to distinguish them and the disbelievers whom we are fighting, in this there is a detailed statement according to what came in the texts. As for children, it is absolutely haram to kill them in other than the two previously mentioned situations; the same applies to the slave i.e. the employee who is with a people through compulsion as he is among the weak people. This is due to the the prohibition of killing either of them in a definite way without being reasoned by any reason. As for women, it is looked into; if she fights then it is allowed to kill her and if she does not, then it is not allowed to kill her. This is according to what Ahmad and Abu Dawud narrated from Rabah bin Rabi’ that he left together with the Messenger of Allah (saw) in a battle which was fought with Khalid bin Walid at its front. Rabah and the Sahabah of the Messenger of Allah (saw) passed by a woman killed in what the front (group) had struck. They stopped to look at her and were astounded by her beauty, until the Messenger of Allah (saw) met them upon his mount so they made a place for him. The Messenger of Allah (saw) stopped over her and said:

So the hadith made the reason for the prohibition of killing her that she does not fight. This is strengthened by Abu Dawud narrated from ‘Ikrimah that the Prophet (saw)

This clarifies that when the women fights, killing her is allowed; and if she does not fight then killing her is not allowed. As for the perishing old man, if he is perishing without there remaining any benefit to the disbelievers or harm to Muslims, it is not allowed to kill him due to the prohibition of killing him. However, if there is benefit in him for the disbelievers or harm to Muslims, it is allowed to kill him. This is due to what Ahmad and At-Tirmidhi narrated from Samra that the Prophet (saw) said:

And also due to what Al-Bukhari narrated from the hadith of Abu Musa that when the Prophet (saw) finished from Hunain, he sent Abu Amir over the army of Awtas. He met Dureed As Sama, and he was one hundred (years) and something, and they had brought him to plan the war for them. Abu Amir killed him and the Prophet (saw) did not reject that from him. Accordingly the hadith of Anas (ra) is taken to mean the perishing old man without being any benefit in him or harm emanating from him; he is the perishing old man as came in the same hadith. These matters for which came prohibition about performing them are not done except according to how the text came with them. Anything beyond that is not allowed. No action done by Muslims to their disbeliever enemy is repulsive as long as this action occurred in the situation of war, whether this action was allowed (halal) or forbidden (haram) outside of war. Nothing is excluded from this except the action for which there has come an absolute prohibition against it in war.