THE TREATMENT OF the Jews by Prophet Muhammadsa is perhaps one of the most commonly cited examples by critics of Islam. However, the reality is that Prophet Muhammadsa always went out of his way to treat the Jews kindly and with love and compassion. This was particularly demonstrated when he signed treaties of peace and security with the Jewish tribes of Banū Qainuqā‘, Banū Naḍīr and Banū Quraiẓah, and laid the foundation for peaceful and harmonious collaboration. However, as the Muslims grew in strength and numbers, members of these tribes began to show signs of discontent and at occasions, they even made provocative statements akin to incitement for war. For instance, once after the Battle of Badr, the Prophet Muhammadsa addressed a gathering of the Jews and invited them to Islam. They were so angered by his humble preaching that they said in response:
“O Muhammadsa, it seems that you have perhaps become arrogant after killing a few Quraish. Those people were inexperienced in the art of war. If you were to fight us, you would come to know the real likes of warriors”.112
While the Prophet Muhammadsa only warned and advised the Jews, they responded with such statements that were confrontational.
What is more is that these were not empty threats. Members among these Jewish tribes began to openly rebel against the Muslims and began to express their dislike and resentment for the Muslims. Prophet Muhammadsa on the other hand always took care to teach patience and tolerance. On one occasion, an argument broke out between a Jew and a Muslim, when the Jew asserted the superiority of Mosesas above all other prophets. The Muslim became so angered by this that he dealt very harshly with the Jew asserting the superiority of Prophet Muhammadsa. When Prophet Muhammadsa was informed of this, he was displeased and said to the Muslim rebukingly:
Do not give me superiority over Moses…
Then, he mentioned a greatness of Mosesas and consoled the Jew.113 Eventually, the provocative actions of the Jews escalated to the point of violence and they were given the option to leave Madīnah along with their valuables, which they chose to do.
Some of the Jews belonging to the tribes of Banū Qainuqā‘ and Banū Naḍīr settled in the area of Khaibar, which was only 150 kilometres from Madīnah. These people were extremely hostile to Islam and the Muslims, and along with the help of other tribes in Arabia, they had intentions to attack the Muslims. In the past, they had participated in warfare against the Muslims and had killed them without remorse. An example is the Battle of the Trench, when Muslims were attacked in Madīnah by ten thousand troops. These troops included many Jews of Khaibar. The same people also made the tribe of Banū Quraiẓah violate the terms of their pact, and encouraged them to attack Muslims. One of the leaders of the people of Khaibar, named Al-Yusayr Ibn Rizam, also gathered his tribe to attack the Muslims. All such incidents recorded in history enable one to see the context of the relationship between the Muslims and the Jews of Khaibar, and how much hatred they had created against the Muslims. They did not want peace, and their goal was to end Islam and kill Muslims.
They made constant efforts to inflame other tribes against the Muslims including the Christian tribes settled on the southern frontier of the Roman Empire. They even wrote to their co-religionists in Iraq and used propaganda to incite the Chosroes of Iran against the Muslims. This caused the Chosroes to send orders to the Governor of Yemen to arrest Prophet Muhammadsa. However, due to Divine protection, before these orders could be carried out, he was deposed and killed by his own son, who cancelled these orders. Such hostile and dangerous actions of the Jews resulted in the Jews becoming further distanced from Madīnah.
When critics and Islamophobes speak or write about these incidents, they seem to purposely and intentionally hide these relevant contexts. Regardless, these statements should not be seen as a show of contempt for all Jews. They are made only in reference to those among the Jews of Madīnah or (later) Khaibar who sought to aggressively attack and kill the Muslims.
The Jews of Khaibar had decided to hire soldiers from the tribe of Banū Ghatafān to attack Madīnah. After the treaty of Hudaibiyya, this tribe raided Madīnah, and robbed innocent people and killed an innocent man as well:
When the day dawned, ‘Abd al-Rahmān al-Fazarī made a raid and drove away all the camels of the Messenger of Allahsa and killed the man who looked after them.114
This narration provides yet further evidence of one of the many instances of hostile behavior of some Jews against the Muslims. It was after this and other news about the continued preparations of war by the Jews of Khaibar that Prophet Muhammadsa decided to banish them from Khaibar.
The narration quoted above goes on to mention that when the Muslims reached Khaibar, Marhab (the King) was already ready to engage in a battle. The battle began and, in the end, the Jews decided to surrender. Prophet Muhammadsa of Islam then signed a peace treaty with them which stated that all Jews, their wives and children would leave Khaibar and settle in some place further away from Madīnah.
As is usually the case with Prophet Muhammadsa, we see examples of his compassion even in times of war. In this case for instance, there was a Jewish woman who attempted to poison Prophet Muhammadsa and his companions by inviting them for a meal. One of the companions named Bishrara even died after eating the poisoned meat. Prophet Muhammadsa was however saved through a Divine revelation as a result of which he did not take a full bite of the poisoned food. He asked the woman why she did this, and she replied:
My people were at war with you, and my relations were killed in this battle. I decided to poison you, believing that if you were an impostor you would die and we should be safe, but if you were a Prophet, God would save you.115
In reality, she was liable to be given the death penalty or life imprisonment for this attempted murder; but the compassionate, merciful Prophet Muhammadsa did not award any punishment to this woman. Instead, he forgave her, and once again it was this merciful character of Prophet Muhammadsa that attracted many common people to convert to Islam.
Therefore, the fair-minded reader should meticulously study these contextual occurrences to come to know the truly beautiful character of Prophet Muhammadsa and avoid any possibility of succumbing to the unfounded propaganda carried out by the Islamophobes.