Muhammad: Prophetof WarIn the course of these battles, Muhammad articulated numerous prin-
ciples that have been followed by Muslims to this day. Therefore, itis
important to record some features of Muhammad's battles, which can pro-
vide insight into today's newspaper headlines—insights that continue,
sadly, to elude many analysts and experts.Muhammad the raiderMuha mmad alre ady had expe rien ce asawarr ior befo re he assu med the
rol eof pr oph et. He had pa rt ic ip at ed in tw o lo cal wa rs bet we en hi s
Quraysh tribe and their neighboring rivals Banu Hawazin. But his unique role
as prop het-warr ior woul d come late r. Afte r rece ivin g reve lati onsAllah
through the angel Gabriel in610,he began by just preaching
to his trib e the worsh ip of One God and his own posi tion as a prop het,
Buthe was not well rec eive d by his Qura ysh bre thr en in Mec ca,
who rea cte d dis dai nfu lly to his pro phet ic cal l and ref use d to give
up the irGods. Muhammad 's frustrat ion and rage became evident.
When even his uncleAbuLahab, rejecte d his message, Muhammad
cursed him and his wifein viole nt langua ge that has been prese rved
in the Qur'an , the holyof Islam: "May the hands of Abu Lahab
perish! May he himself perish!Nothin g shall his wealth and gains
avail him. He shall be burnt in a flaming fire, and his wife, laden
with faggots, shall have a rope of fiber around her neck!" (Qur'an
111:1-5).
Ult ima tel y, Muh amm ad wou ld tur n fro m vio len t wor ds to viol ent
dee ds. In 622, he final ly fled his native Mecca for a nearb y town,
Medina where a band of tribal warriors had accepted himasa prophet and
pledged loyalty to him. In Medina, these new Muslims began raiding the
cara vans of the Qura ysh, with Muha mmad pers onall y leadi ng many of
the seraids. These raids kept the nasce nt Musli m moveme nt solve nt and
helped form Islamic theology—as in one notorious incident when a band
of Muslims raided a Quraysh caravan at Nakhla, a settlement not far from