The Conquest of Mecca: A Tale of Psychological Victory -Masum Ahmed

The campaign to conquer Mecca of Prophet Mohammad (pbuh) took place between 17th and 21st Ramadan of the eighth Hijri year. It was basically an intelligence operation. Psychological warfare was the focus of this campaign. Psychological warfare is the main strategy of intelligence operations. Prophet Mohammad (pbuh) said, War is a game of intelligence. He defeated the Quraish without fighting through tactics and forced them to surrender. Again, he instilled love and respect in the minds of the enemies by declaring generosity, human rights, and amnesty.

An apparent peace was established between Mecca and Medina after the Treaty of Hudaybiyah in the sixth Hijri. After the treaty, when the war ceased, the Messenger of Allah (pbuh) quickly spread the call of Tawheed around Medina and the neighboring countries. Following that method in the region where the method was effective, the Prophet (pbuh) started spreading the invitation to Islam all around. He also conducted military operations in small groups to turn the unruly Bedouin and other Arab tribes away from terrorist activities and return to civilized life. Thus, the number of neo-Muslims increased within one and a half years after the treaty, and the situation became more favorable. In this situation, the Quraish of Mecca took several actions and openly broke the treaty of Hudaybiyyah. As a result, there was no option for the Prophet (pbuh) to launch a military campaign against the Quraish.

Prophet Mohammad (pbuh) adopted a visionary plan to defeat the Quraish in a bloodless campaign. If the Muslim army suddenly appeared on the outskirts of Mecca, the Quraish would be completely bewildered and forced to surrender without hindrance. So he kept the entire plan of the campaign in mind and ordered the Muslims only to prepare for war. Keeping the real purpose hidden, he only announced, ‘Whoever believes in Allah and the Hereafter should be present in Medina in the month of Ramadan’. Hearing the announcement, a large number of soldiers from various tribes in the vicinity began to gather in Medina. However, he took all measures to ensure that news of this army gathering did not reach Mecca. He commissioned a patrol led by Hazrat Umar (R.A.), who would bring back every suspect travelling towards Mecca, carefully monitor the movements of all types of travelers, and collect information from them about Mecca and the surrounding areas. At the same time, he launched a diversionary offensive to divert the attention of everyone inside and outside Medina from Mecca. That is, he sent an army of 80 soldiers under the leadership of Abu Qatada Ibn Ribayi towards the ‘Batan Hisham’ area of Medina. Later, when the Messenger of Allah (pbuh) started his advance towards Mecca, this force changed its pace and went to a place called ‘Sukiya’ and met with the main force of the Prophet (pbuh). A respected companion named Hatib Ibn Abi Balta’a (R.A.), concerned about the safety of his family, sent advance news of the invasion of Mecca to the Quraish through a letter of ten dirhams through a Meccan woman named Umme Sara. May the people of Mecca grant security to his (Hatib’s) family for their cooperation with this information. But the information about sending this secret letter of hate was immediately communicated to Prophet Mohammad through the divine intelligence system. The Prophet (pbuh) immediately sent a three-member search team led by Ali (R.A.), including Hazrat Jubair (R.A.) and Hazrat Miqdad (R.A.), to seize the letter.

Having completed all the preparations, Prophet Mohammad (pbuh) on 10 Ramadan, 8 Hijri, and 1 January 630, with a large army of ten thousand Muslims, started the advance towards Mecca. On the other hand, under the leadership of Hazrat Jubair (R.A.), he deployed an ‘advance guard’ team with two hundred cavalry. On the seventh day of the journey, the Prophet (pbuh) set up camp with the Muslim army at a place called ‘Marruz-Zahran’, one day’s distance from Mecca. Here he ordered each of the Muslim forces to pitch separate tents and light fires in front of their respective tents at night as part of psychological warfare against the Quraish. As a result, the fires ignited in 10,000 individual furnaces penetrated the darkness of the night in the entire wilderness and descended into a terrible scene.

The sudden arrival of such a large force at the gates of Mecca, concealing all the information about its preparation, was a great security success for Prophet Mohammad (pbuh). The first requirement for winning a war is to achieve surprise. The Prophet (pbuh) was able to achieve this surprise’ successfully, i.e., he was able to confuse the enemy. Suddenly, one night, the Quraish were overwhelmed by the sight of flames in a vast area. They sent a patrol of three men, under the leadership of Abu Sufyan, to search for information. At that time, a patrol led by Hazrat Umar (R.A.) came out of the darkness and arrested three members of Abu Sufyan’s patrol. Umar (R.A.) captured Abu Sufyan and quickly brought him before the Prophet Mohammad (pbuh). At that time, Hazrat Abbas (R.A.) quickly came to the scene and asked the Prophet (pbuh) for the safety of Abu Sufyan. On the other hand, Hazrat Umar (R.A.) asked permission to kill Abu Sufyan. For 21 long years, the person who tortured the Prophet Mohammad (pbuh) led the Arab tribes together and led them into battle to wipe out Medina and the Muslims. The enemy of that life, who has secretly plotted to kill the Prophet (pbuh), is now in the hands of the Prophet Mohammad (pbuh). Even in such a situation, he did not take any kind of revenge, but instead accepted the offer to give security to Abu Sufyan.

The next morning, the greatest enemy of Islam, in order to break the spirit of Abu Sufyan, said to him, “You will go to Mecca on my behalf and announce, ‘Whoever takes refuge in the house of Abu Sufyan will be safe.’” He also said to Hazrat Abbas: Who ordered Abu Sufyan to stand on a hill near the narrow pass to Mecca and arrange to watch the advance of the Muslim army? As a result, standing on the hill, Abu Sufyan was stunned to see the army in a larger size while the entire army marched through the narrow path. Seeing the advancing battalions one after the other with flags in their hands, Abu Sufyan understood that no one could defeat this army today. Abu Sufyan quickly returned to Mecca and ordered everyone to surrender and eliminate all sources of resistance, advising them to enter their own homes, Abu Sufyan’s house, or the Kaaba for safety.

Before entering Mecca with the final offensive, the Prophet (pbuh) gave detailed instructions to the various battalion commanders. Central to this final plan of his was a ‘bloodless’ victory was central to his final plan. He gave strict instructions to all the commanders: ‘The sword cannot be unsheathed unless there is a conflict.’ He specifically instructed the fierce warrior, Hazrat Khalid bin Walid, that if the Quraish did not take up arms against you, they would not raise their swords against anyone. He ordered the entire army to be divided into four commands to enter Mecca from all directions so that the Quraish would not dare to retaliate in any way. Agravyan organized the advance of the four brigades in such a way that each force could support the other. Hazrat Zubair (R.A.) would advance with his battalion from the north, while Force Commander Prophet Mohammad (pbuh) himself would be with the Force Headquarters. Khalid (R.A.) will enter Mecca from the south, Qays Ibn Saad Ibn Ubada (R.A.) with the Ansar Brigade from the west, and Hazrat Abu Ubada (R.A.) with the Mujahid forces from the east. As the northern side was high and the whole of Mecca could be seen from there, for the benefit of ‘command and control’, the Prophet kept his command post attached to the brigade of Zubair, who entered from the north. He asked Jubair (R.A.) to reach a place called ‘Hajun’ and hoist the victory flag and wait for further instructions. And Khalid (R.A.) entered Mecca, came to ‘Safa’ hill, and was instructed to meet the Prophet (pbuh). The remaining three brigades entered Mecca unhindered, but Khalid (pbuh) faced little resistance. In fact, because of the fear of possible resistance from the southern side, i.e., from the lowlands of Mecca, Prophet Mohammad (pbuh), with foresight, gave Khalid (R.A.) the responsibility of that side. Abu Jahal’s son, Ikrama, and two or three other Quraish leaders tried to resist with a small number of men. They martyred two Muslim defectors from the main group. As a result, Khalid (R.A.) launched a vigorous counter-attack, killing 12 of the enemy and leaving the rest scattered and fleeing. Thus, except for this little skirmish, all the forces entered Mecca in great order and silence. A victorious party of ten thousand soldiers entered Mecca silently, without making any kind of noise, rampage of victory, vandalism, indiscriminate killing, looting, etc.

When he entered Mecca, he entered not in the guise of a conqueror but on the back of a camel, with his head bowed, and entered slowly and humbly. At that time, he entered Usama (R.A.), the son of Hazrat Zayed (R.A.), his freed slave, sitting behind him on the back of a camel. It was a wonderful sight for the common people of Mecca! The Prophet of Allah, today, the leader of the great victory, entered Mecca behind everyone with the son of a slave sitting next to him! He entered Mecca, went to Kaaba, and performed Tawaf. At the end of Tawaf, Prophet Mohammad (pbuh) entered the Kaaba, broke the idols of the polytheists, and consecrated the Kaaba. He prayed, expressed his gratitude to Allah, stood at the door of the Kaaba, and gave a groundbreaking speech to the assembled Meccans. Meanwhile, the assembled Meccans are trembling with shame and fear. They are disoriented as they recall their activities over the past 21 years. But the Messenger of Allah (pbuh) said, ‘There is no complaint against you today. Go! I have liberated you; you are free’. The assembled Quraish were overwhelmed by this speech of the Prophet. They were speechless, with tears in their eyes. They realized the beauty of Islam and started becoming Muslims in droves. This psychological warfare of Prophet Mohammad (pbuh) proved to be more powerful than armed warfare.