Banu Qurayza

[Supernova_Girl]

@mAd_ScIeNtIsT

A couple of points.

1. As noted, the history of the Muslims is subject to less strict criteria of authenticity than Hadith & Sunnah, so the story may be inaccurate.

2. Having said that, the Banu Qurayza betrayed their miitary alliance with the Muslims in the middle of battle .

In modern terms, the act of siding with the enemy during wartime is treason; this is punishable by death in many societies including most western societies until quite recently, and is still punishable by death in most eastern societies. In fact, under current US military law, desertion during wartime, the offense commited by the adult men of the Banu Qurayza, still carries a maximum penalty of death.

It was the adult men of the Banu Qurayza who would have been the soldiers in the battle; it was the adult men of the Banu Qurayza who commited treason during the battle; it was the adult men of the Banu Qurayza who were duly punished for this treason.

If the story as recited by Ibn Ishaq is true, then it was not a massacre. It was a mass execution, meted out to those who had committed a capital crime en masse.

Ok thanks! This makes sense and I am aware of the story. However, my point is why didn’t Muhammad SAW being the true messenger of Allah do anything to stop this massacre? This bugs me a bit. How is this any different than what the Taliban are doing? In their opinion, they are also carrying out the order of Allah (they are at war with hypocrites-muslims who don’t follow Sharia, killing their own kind in the name of Allah). This entire event justifies what the Taliban are doing today, don’t you think? Now I wonder, are the Taliban wrong?