BIRTH OF ISLAM 11internal dissent, was too much. The Meccans were overawed by the Mus-
lim numbers and fled the field without shedding any blood. Muhammad
proclaimed a general amnesty, but held the enemy leaders accountable.
The relief and surprise caused the city to swear allegiance to Muhammad.
Having unrestricted access to Mecca, Muhammad entered the sacred
temples of the idolaters and smashed the idols, said to have numbered
- He proceeded to declare the area around the KaÛbah as sacred to
Islam and issued Surah IX, 28, which forbade non-Muslims from ap-
proaching it. This was probably intended to break the back of the poly-
theists and their annual pilgrimage to the KaÛbah and may not have been
intended to be a permanent exclusion, but it has become one, and to this
day no non-Muslim is permitted there. Apparently, however, in at least
fifteen recorded instances Christians penetrated the two Holy Cities and
escaped alive. The first was Ludovico di Varthema of Bologna in 1503.
Angry at the destruction of their idols, the remaining pagan tribes
sought to regain control of the KaÛbah. They gathered 12,000 troops and
at Huneyn in a deep ravine ambushed Muhammad and his bodyguard.
The fight was horrible. Although outnumbered and in a tactically awkward
spot, the Muslims were victorious. The booty was tremendous, as many
of these nomadic tribesmen had brought all their wealth with them. Having
crushed his enemies, Muhammad sent out emissaries to continue the de-
struction of pagan idols. Only the Taif appear to have made any consid-
erable effort to resist Muhammad, so he laid siege to their city. This
appears to be Muhammad’s first use of siege artillery, and its first use by
any Arabs.
Muhammad had become the major power in the region and could now
increase his power without engaging in battle. In 632 he stationed a gar-
rison in Tabuk and signed peace treaties with the Christian chief of Aylah
and the Hebrew tribes in the oases of Maqna, Adhruh, and al-Jarba to the
south. These non-Muslims taken under the protection of the Muslims were
obliged to pay a tribute or tax known as thejizyah.This tax would be
imposed, as the empire grew, on all non-Muslims who became part of the
empire. It was the penalty for not converting and would become a lever
for subtly forcing conversion.
That same year Muhammad heard that the Byzantine emperor was gath-
ering a force in Syria with the goal of destroying him. The Byzantine
force is reported to have 100,000 men. Though such figures are notori-
ously unreliable, it is probable that the force gathering was considerably
larger than what the Muslims would deploy against it. Sources agree Mu-
hammad sent 3,000 men into Syria under the command of Zeyd (or Zaid).
Some claim that this campaign was unsuccessful, but the reckless valor