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At the time Ibn ^Abdul-Wahhab and his assistants
initiated their treacherous ideology by which they
called the Muslims blasphemers, they were gaining
control of eastern Arabia one tribe after another.
This expansion eventually encompassed al-Yaman,
Makkah, al-Madinah, and the tribes of al-Hijaz all
the way to ash-Sham.
Initially, the Wahhabis sent a group to Makkah
and al-Madinah thinking they would be able to spoil
the belief of the scholars of these two holy cities
and tamper with their belief through lies and
fabrications. When they reached there and declared
their beliefs, the scholars of Makkah and al-Madinah
refuted them and established the Islamic evidences
against them--which they could not refute. The
scholars were certain about the Wahhabis’ ignorance
and misguidance and found them absurd and
thoughtless.
After evaluating their beliefs and finding them full
of many types of blasphemy, the Wahhabis fled like
frightened zebras fleeing from a lion. Hence, after
establishing the proofs, the scholars wrote an
attestation against the Wahhabiyyah to the Head
Judge of Makkah confirming the Wahhabis as
blasphemous because of their beliefs. The aim of the
scholars was to disclose the misguidance of the
Wahhabis and make it known to the Muslims near and
far. This action took place during the rulership of
Sharif Mas^ud Ibn Sa^id Ibn Sa^d Ibn Zayn, the ruler
of Hijaz who ordered the imprisonment of those
unjust Wahhabis. Sharif Mas^ud Ibn Sa^id Ibn Sa^d
Ibn Zayn died in 1165 A.H.
Some Wahhabis managed to escape their imprisonment.
They went to ad-Dar^iyyah and spoke about what they
encountered in Makkah. This made the Wahhabis more
devilishly haughty, and they started attacking the
tribes which were loyal to the prince of Makkah.
The fighting between the Wahhabis and the prince
of Makkah, Mawlana Sharif Ghalib Ibn Mus^id Ibn
Sa^id Ibn Sa^d Ibn Zayd, broke out after 1205 A.H.
Many battles took place between the prince and the
Wahhabis. Although many people were killed, the
Wahhabis’ strength kept intensifying. Their
innovations kept propagating until most of the
Bedouin tribes paid allegiance to them--even the
Bedouins who were under the rulership of the prince
of Makkah.
In 1217 A.H., they marched with big armies to the
area of at-Ta’if. In Dhul-Qa^dah{19} of the same
year, they lay siege to the area the Muslims were,
subdued them, and killed the people: men, women, and
children. They also looted the Muslims’ belongings
and possessions. Only a few people escaped their
barbarism.
After at-Ta’if{18} came under their control, the
Wahhabis planned to march towards Makkah, but this
was during the time the Muslims were performing
Pilgrimage, and many of the Muslims from ash-Sham
and Egypt were in Makkah. The Wahhabis knew if they
attacked Makkah at that time all the people
performing Pilgrimage would join in fighting them.
They stayed in at-Ta’if until Hajj was over, and the
people had returned to their countries. Then the
Wahhabis and their armies set out to attack Makkah.
Sharif Ghalib did not have enough power to face
these armies, so he went to Juddah. The people of
Makkah were afraid the Wahhabis would treat them in
the same manner the people of at-Ta’if were treated,
so they negotiated and surrendered to them. The
Wahhabis granted the people of Makkah security and
entered Makkah on the eighth of Muharram, 1218 A.H.
They occupied themselves there for fourteen days
ordering the Muslims to repent and embrace
Islam--since the Wahhabis falsely claimed them as
blasphemers. The people were prohibited from doing
what the Wahhabis incorrectly believed to be
blasphemy, like performing tawassul and visiting the
graves.
Having gained control of at-Ta’if and Makkah, the
Wahhabis turned their armies towards Juddah to fight
Sharif Ghalib. When they surrounded Juddah, Sharif
Ghalib bombarded them with cannons and projectiles.
He killed many Wahhabis and prevented the conquering
of Juddah. After eight days, the Wahhabis departed
Juddah to return to their own territories. The
Wahhabis left some of their army in Makkah and
appointed ^Abdul-Mu^in, the brother of Sharif Ghalib,
as prince. ^Abdul-Mu^in only accepted this position
to protect the people of Makkah and shelter them
from the evil mistreatment of the harmful Wahhabis.
In the month of Rabi^-ul-’Awwal of the same year,
Prince Ghalib left Juddah accompanied by Sharif
Basha--the governor of Juddah and the representative
of the Supreme ^Uthmaniyy{21} Sultan. They arrived
in Makkah with their army and overpowered the
Wahhabis. They expelled the Wahhabi army and this
brought Makkah back under the authority of Sharif
Ghalib.
The Wahhabis left Makkah and became involved
with fighting many of the tribes. They captured at-Ta’if
and appointed ^Uthman al-Madayiqiyy as the governor.
This governor joined forces with some of the
Wahhabis’ soldiers and started fighting the tribes
next to the borders of Makkah and al-Madinah until
they pledged allegiance to them. They eventually
subdued all the tribes and captured all the lands
originally under the authority of the Governor of
Makkah. After this, ^Uthman al-Madayiqiyy mobilized
his army in an attempt to capture Makkah. In 1220
A.H. they lay siege to Makkah and then surrounded it
from all directions to tighten this siege. They
blocked the routes to the city and prevented
supplies from reaching there. It was a great
hardship on the people of Makkah. Food became
exorbitantly expensive and then unavailable. They
resorted to eating dogs.
Sharif Ghalib was compelled to ask for
reconciliation with the Wahhabis. He accepted for
some people to arbitrate between them. He signed an
agreement with conditions stipulating the rulership
of Makkah would be kept for him, and the people of
Makkah would be treated leniently. The Wahhabis
accepted these conditions. They entered Makkah by
the end of Dhul-Qa^dah in 1220 A.H. They also gained
control of al-Madinah. They plundered what was in
the room of the Prophet, sallallahu ^alayhi wa
sallam, took all the money that was there, and did
some disgraceful acts. They appointed a man among
them, Mubarak Ibn Madyan, as the governor of
al-Madinah.
The Wahhabis ruled Makkah and al-Madinah for seven
years. During these years, they prevented the people
of ash-Sham and Egypt from entering Makkah carrying
the cloak{20} of the Ka^bah when they came to
perform pilgrimage. The Wahhabis started to make the
cloak for the Ka^bah from black material. They
prevented the people from smoking tobacco. When they
found someone smoking they punished him fiercely.
During this time, the Wahhabis destroyed the domes
built on the graves of the righteous Muslims.
Throughout these years, the ^Uthmaniyy State was
in great confusion and chaos. The ^Uthmaniyys were
engaged in fierce fighting with the Christians and
they were trying to cope with disunity among the
ruling power. One sultan would be appointed, then
thrown out or possibly killed, until 1226 AH when
the Sultan issued an order to the ruler of Egypt,
Muhammad ^Aliyy Basha, to prepare to fight the
Wahhabis.
Muhammad ^Aliyy Basha organized a big army and
by a mandate from the Sultan, appointed his son,
Tusun Basha, as its commanding officer. Those troops
left Egypt in Ramadan of the same year and journeyed
by land and by sea until they reached Yanbu^ and
regained it form the Wahhabis. In Dhul-Hijjah 1226
AH, the army reached an area between as-Safra’ and
al-Hadidah. A fierce fight broke out with the
Bedouins who were in al-Harbiyyah. These tribes were
loyal to the Wahhabis, and many other tribes also
joined them. As a result, the Egyptian army was
badly defeated, many of the soldiers were massacred,
and all the belongings of the army were looted. A
small number of this army made their way back to
Egypt.
In 1227 A.H., Muhammad ^Aliyy Basha was
determined to lead the army to al-Hijaz himself, so
he mobilized more troops. In the month of Sha^ban
some ranks of the army were sent before him--at the
peak of their strength and preparedness. Among their
artillery were eighteen canons. In Ramadan, the army
captured what the Wahhabis formerly controlled and
regained the area of as-Safra’, al-Hadidah, and
other places without a fight, i.e., by attracting
the shaykhs of the Bedouin tribes to their side.
Muhammad ^Aliyy Basha gave money to the leaders of
these tribes and salaries were arranged for them.
These arrangements were made under the management of
Sharif Ghalib, the Sharif of Makkah, who fooled the
Wahhabis into believing he was on their side. The
first time the Egyptians were defeated, they had not
consulted with Sharif Ghalib--so he was unaware of
their need for a similar arrangement.
Around the end of Dhul-Qa^dah, the army entered
al-Madinah. When the news about the victory of the
Muslim army reached Egypt, the Muslims celebrated
the event for three days. They decorated the city,
displayed fireworks, and fired their guns in
celebration. They conveyed this good news to all the
Christian kings.
The army traveling by sea captured Juddah at the
beginning of Muharram, 1228 A.H., and then headed
towards Makkah to regain control. The army did not
engage in any battles with the Wahhabis as a result
of the secret arrangements the Sharif managed to
achieve. When the army reached Juddah, the Wahhabiyy
army and princes fled Makkah. Al-Madayiqiyy, the
Wahhabi princes of at-Ta’if, and their army fled
at-Ta’if when they got word the Muslim army regained
control of Juddah and Makkah.
The prince of the Wahhabis, Prince Su^ud, went to
Hajj in 1227 A.H., before these events took place.
After Hajj he went to at-Ta’if and then back to
ad-Dar^iyyah. It was some time before he learned
about the defeat in al-Madinah the Wahhabis suffered
at the hands of the Sultan’s army. When he arrived
in ad-Dar^iyyah he got word of the capture of Makkah
and at-Ta’if.
In Rabi^-ul-’Awwal, 1228 A.H., Muhammad ^Aliyy
Basha sent delegates to the capital of the state
(Istanbul) carrying good new and keys. A written
correspondence explained the keys were from Makkah,
al-Madinah, Juddah and at-Ta’if. They entered the
palace of the Sultan in a dignified and royal
parade, followed by drummers announcing the great
victory as songs were chanted joyfully. Fireworks
were lit and cannons were fired; the delegates who
brought the keys were honored. The Sultan promoted
the rank of Muhammad ^Aliyy Basha, decorated him
with many medallions, and granted him other
medallions with an authorization to decorate the
officers of his choice.
In Shawwal, 1228 A.H., before Muhammad ^Aliyy Basha
left Egypt for al-Hijaz, Sharif Ghalib caught
^Uthman al-Madayiqiyy, the Wahhabi governor of
at-Ta’if, who was one of their greatest agents and
rulers. He was placed in iron chains and sent to
Egypt. He arrived in Egypt in Dhul-Qa^dah--after
Muhammad ^Aliyy Basha left for al-Hijaz. From Egypt,
^Uthman al-Madayiqiyy was sent to the capital of the
state--where later he was killed.
In Muharram, 1229 A.H., Mubarak Ibn Madyan, the
Wahhabi governor of al-Madinah was sent to the
capital. He was carried around Constantinople in a
disgraceful manner for the people to see. He was
killed after this, and his head was hung on the gate
of the government building. The same thing was done
to ^Uthman al-Madayiqiyy as a punishment for all the
crimes they committed during their rulership.
Sharif Ghalib was sent to Salonika{22}, held in high
regard, and treated well until he died in 1231 A.H.
He was buried there, and a dome was constructed over
his grave--and to this day, the people still visit
his grave. Sharif Ghalib’s rulership over Makkah
lasted for twenty-six years.
Muhammad ^Aliyy Basha continued to fight the
Wahhabis, and he sent a large number of troops to
Saudi Arabia in the areas of Turabah, Bishah,
Ghamid, Dhahran, and ^Asir. His aim was to eradicate
the Wahhabis, so he personally led the army in
pursuit of them. In Sha^ban, 1229 A.H., he located
them, killed and captured many, and demolished their
strongholds. Prince Su^ud, the head of the Wahhabis,
died in Jumadal-Ula, and his son, ^Abdullah, took
over the leadership.
Shortly before the time of Pilgrimage, Muhammad
^Aliyy Basha left these areas and departed for
Makkah. He performed Hajj and stayed in Makkah until
Rajab, 1230 A.H. Muhammad ^Aliyy Basha left Hasan
Basha{23} in Makkah and returned to Egypt in the
middle of Rajab, 1230 A.H. He had spent one year and
seven months residing in al-Hijaz, because he would
not go back to Egypt until he had arranged the
affairs of al-Hijaz and destroyed the Wahhabi
factions spread throughout the Bedouin tribes of
al-Hijaz and Eastern Arabia.
The Wahhabi prince, ^Abdullah Ibn Su^ud, was
still in ad-Dar^iyyah when Muhammad ^Aliyy Basha
made preparations for an army to fight him. The
troops were sent under the leadership of his son,
Ibrahim Basha. Prior to this, ^Abdullah Ibn Su^ud
corresponded with Tusun Basha Ibn Muhammad ^Aliyy
Basha; Tusun Basha was in al-Madinah, to make a
peace accord with ^Abdullah Ibn Su^ud. In this
proposed accord, he agreed to pay his loyalty to
Muhammad ^Aliyy Basha on the condition he was left
as the governor of that area. Muhammad ^Aliyy Basha
did not approve this arrangement. The army was
mobilized under Ibrahim’s command at the end of 1231
A.H. Ibrahim Basha and his army reached ad-Dar^iyyah
in 1232 A.H. where they battled ^Abdullah Ibn Su^ud.
In Dhul-Qa^dah, 1233 A.H., they conquered the
Wahhabis.
When Egypt received news of the victory, the people
were extremely triumphant and rejoiced for seven
days. They set off fireworks and fired 1,000 canons
in celebration of this great event.
Muhammad ^Aliyy Basha had a tremendous concern
for fighting the Wahhabis by sea. He spent great
amounts of money to attain his goal. Some of those
who used to serve him said on one occasion 45,000
riyals{24} were paid to transport ammunition{25}.
This costly payment was one of many times such
things occurred. Another time, one transport in
particular was made for ammunition carried from
Yanbu^ to al-Madinah. Each camel cost six riyals,
half of which was paid by the governor of Yanbu^ and
the other half by the governor of al-Madinah. Upon
the arrival of the shipment from al-Madinah to
ad-Dar^iyyah, the fee for the transport of
ammunition alone was 140,000 riyals.
Ibrahim Basha caught ^Abdullah Ibn Su^ud and
sent him and many of the Wahhabi princes to Egypt.
They arrived on the seventeenth of Muharram, 1234
A.H., where people gathered to see the Wahhabi
leader paraded around the capital riding on a camel.
After this, ^Abdullah Ibn Su^ud was brought to see
Muhammad ^Aliyy Basha. Muhammad ^Aliyy Basha stood
up for ^Abdullah Ibn Su^ud, was gentle with him, and
smiled as he let Abdullah sit beside him. Muhammad
^Aliyy Basha talked to him.
Al-Basha: Why do you keep rebelling?
Ibn Su^ud: The war goes on; you lose sometimes and
you win other times.
Al-Basha: How did you find my son, Ibrahim Basha?
Ibn Su^ud: He was not reckless but he put forth
effort and so did we until what Allah had willed
happened.
Al-Basha: I will petition our master, the Sultan, on
your behalf.
Ibn Su^ud: What Allah willed to be shall be.
Al-Basha ordered a robe{26} to be put on Ibn Su^ud
before he left to the house of Isma^il Basha in
Bulaq{27}. Abdullah Ibn Su^ud had a small metal box
with him.
Al-Basha: What is this?
Ibn Su^ud: This was taken by my father from the room
of the Prophet. I am taking it with me to the
Sultan.
Al-Basha ordered the box to be opened. They found
three Mushafs in it--the like of which no one had
ever seen--and with them were 300 large pearls, one
large emerald, and a golden ribbon.
Al-Basha: You have taken much more than that.
Ibn Su^ud: This is what I found kept by my father.
He did not take all what was in the room for
himself. The Bedouin tribesmen, the people of
al-Madinah, the Aghas of al-Haram, and the Sharif of
Makkah also removed things from the Prophet’s room.
Al-Basha: That is true. We found some of these
things with the Sharif.
Then ^Abdullah Ibn Su^ud was sent to the place of
the Sultan. In Muharram, 1235 A.H., Ibrahim Basha
returned to Egypt from al-Hijaz after he destroyed
ad-Dar^iyyah such that it was abandoned by its
inhabitants. When Ibn Su^ud reached the headquarters
of the Sultanate in Rabi^-ul-’Awwal, he was paraded
around the city for all the people to see. He was
then put to death at the Door of Hamayun (as a
punishment for his crimes). The chiefs of his
followers were executed in different places.
This is a very brief summary of the story of
Muhammad Ibn ^Abdul-Wahhab. To talk at length on
each of these details would be very lengthy. The
tribulations inflicted by the Wahhabis were a
calamity for the Muslims. The Wahhabis shed a great
deal of blood and robbed a great deal of money;
their harm was prevalent and their evil spread.
Many of the hadiths of the Prophet, sallallahu
^alayhi wa sallam, spoke explicitly about this
tribulation. One narration said:
which means: <<There will be people who come from
the eastern side of Arabia who will recite Qur’an,
but their recitation will not pass beyond their
collarbones{28}. They will go out of Islam as
swiftly as the arrow goes through the prey. Their
sign is shaving their heads.>> This hadith was
mentioned in many narrations, including
Sahih-ul-Bukhariyy and other books of hadith. There
is no need to expound on listing these narrations or
their narrators because they are well-known and of
the sahih{29} classification.
The Prophet said: "Their sign is shaving their
heads." This is an explicit reference to the
Wahhabi sect. They used to order all those who
follow them to shave their heads. None of the
previous sects, i.e., those who came before the
Wahhabis, like the Khawarij or other innovators, had
this sign.
As-Sayyid ^Abdur-Rahman al-Ahdal, the Mufti of
Zabid, used to say: "There is no need for writing
against the Wahhabis. For, in refuting them, it is
sufficient to mention the hadith of the Prophet,
sallallahu ^alayhi wa sallam: <<Their sign is
shaving their heads>> since no other innovators
had ever done it."
It happened once that a women made her point against
Ibn ^Abdul-Wahhab when they compelled her to follow
them and she did. He ordered her to shave her head.
She told him: "Since you order the woman to shave
her head, you have to order the man to shave his
beard. The hair of the women is her decoration and
the decoration of the man is his beard." Ibn
^Abdul-Wahhab could not answer her.
Among of what the Wahhabis used to do was to prevent
the people from asking the Prophet, sallallahu
^alayhi wa sallam, for his intercession--although
the hadiths about the Prophet’s intercession are
numerous and are of the mutawatir{30}
classification. Most of his intercession is for the
Muslims of his nation who committed major sins. The
Wahhabis also prohibited Muslims from reading
Dala’il-ul-Khayrat--which includes saying as-Salat
on the Prophet and mentioning many of the Prophet’s
complete descriptions. They said this is blasphemy.
They also prevented Muslims from saying as-Salat on
the Prophet on the minarets after the Adhan. Once a
righteous blind Muslim was calling Adhan and said
as-Salat on the Prophet after the Adhan{31}. The
Wahhabis brought him to Ibn ^Abdul-Wahhab who
ordered his execution.
If I [the author] was to pursue the mischievous
things the Wahhabis did, I would fill notebooks and
lots of papers. However, what has been mentioned
thus far is enough.
Allah, subhanahu wa ta^ala, knows best.
- At-Ta’if is a city in Hijaz.
- Dhul-Qa^dah is the eleventh month of the
Islamic lunar calendar.
- The cloak of the Ka^bah is the cloth
covering the Ka^bah.
- The ^Uthmaniyy State was the Islamic
state governing Turkey, parts of the ex-USSR,
Greece, Bulgaria, Romania, ex-Yugoslavia, Albania,
Iraq, the Arabic peninsula, Egypt, ash-Sham, Libya,
and other areas.
- Salonika is a town in Greece.
- Hasan Basha was one of the leaders of the
Egyptian army.
- Riyals were a unit of silver currency at
that time.
- This transport of ammunition involved
crossing the Red Sea by ship and then crossing the
land by camel.
- Clothing with a nice garment is a
traditional show of generosity.
- Bulaq is an area in Cairo.
- This means they do not understand the
meaning of what they read.
- A sahih hadith is a hadith which is
related by a trustworthy Muslim from another
trustworthy Muslim back to the Prophet or his
Companion, and is devoid of any defect in this
narration.
- A mutawatir hadith is a hadith related
by a large number of Muslims who witnessed it and
conveyed it to large group of people who conveyed it
to another large number and so on, until it reached
us. Such a hadith is narrated in a way which is
impossible for the narrators to have agreed to lie
about it.
- Adhan is the Call for Prayer.
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