Battle of al-Musayyakh (12 AH)

وقعة المصيّخ

633 CE · 12 AH

al-Yamama

The night assault at al-Musayyakh: Khalid timed al-Qa'qa', Abu Layla and 'A'bad to converge on Hudhayl ibn 'Imran's camp in one hour and attacked the sleeping army from three sides. Among the dead were 'Abd al-'Uzza ibn Abi Ruhm and Labid ibn Jarir — two men who had already accepted Islam and carried Abu Bakr's letter confirming it; the caliph paid their blood-money and commended their children, and 'Umar counted their death against Khalid. Hurqus ibn al-Nu'man, who had warned the camp in vain, sat drinking a farewell cup until his head fell into the bowl 1.

Depth

At a glance

Review
Draft Completeness 2/5 · Help complete it

In time

620630640650
The Prophetic Era · The Rashidun Caliphate

In space

al-Yamama

Map: Natural Earth, public domain · places and route from the graph

Summary

When the people of Husayd and al-Khanafis had been routed, Khalid ibn al-Walid (may God be pleased with him) arranged with his commanders al-Qa'qa', Abu Layla, A'bad and 'Urwa a single night and hour. They gathered at al-Musayyakh of the Banu al-Barsha' and raided the camp of al-Hudhayl ibn 'Imran while its men slept, attacking from three directions and killing them. Among the strangest episodes was the killing of Abd al-Uzza ibn Abi Rahm and Labid ibn Jarir, who had both embraced Islam and carried a document from Abu Bakr confirming their conversion. When this reached Abu Bakr, he paid their blood-money and entrusted their children to care; Umar counted their killing against Khalid. Harqus ibn al-Nu'man had advised them, but they did not accept. He told his family, "Drink the drink of one bidding farewell," and drank until his head was struck, and it fell into the bowl of wine. 1.

Connections

Explore the connections

Occurred at
al-Yamama
Had participant
Khalid ibn al-Walid· al-Qa'qa' ibn 'Amr

People and things also explored

Battle of Ullays (12 AH)· The Battle of Yamama· the Khalid shrine outside Homs· Abu Bakr's Sortie to Naq' and Khalid's Command· Ali ibn Abi Talib's expeditions to Yemen (twice)· Ali sent to Banu Jadhima to correct Khalid's error· The Battle of Ajnadayn· Battle of al-Firad (12 AH)

Sources

  1. al-Kamil fi'l-Tarikh of Ibn al-Athir , p. 244-245
Cite this page

islam.museum contributors. “Battle of al-Musayyakh (12 AH)”. islam.museum, https://islam.museum/en/event/battle-of-musayyakh/. CC BY-SA 4.0. Last updated 2026-10-21.

Improve this page on GitHub · Report an error · JSON

Related

Battle of Ullays (12 AH)

The battle of Ullays on the Euphrates: Christian tribesmen of Bakr ibn Wa'il, avenging Walaja, joined Jaban's Persian army; when they spread their meal to show contempt Khalid fell upon them before they could eat, killed Malik ibn Qays in a duel, then vowed to make their blood flow — a day and a night of executions until al-Qa'qa' told him to release the river's water over the field to fulfill the oath, and it was named the River of Blood. The dead were reckoned at seventy thousand; at Amghishiya next he took more plunder than anywhere before, and Abu Bakr said: 'Women are powerless to bear the like of Khalid'.