Page:Baladhuri-Hitti1916.djvu/178

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162
THE ORIGINS OF THE ISLAMIC STATE

the death of Ḳais took place five days before the expiration of the Prophet, who on his death-bed said: "Allah has brought about the death of al-Aswad al-ʿAnsi through the righteous man Fairûz ibn-ad-Dailami," and that the news of the conquest came to abu-Bakr ten days after he had been proclaimed caliph.

Bakr ibn-al-Haitham from an-Nuʿmân ibn-Burzuj, one of al-Abnâʾ:—The Prophet's ʿâmil, whom al-Aswad drove out of Ṣanʿâʾ, was Abân ibn-Saʿîd ibn-al-ʿÂṣi; and the one who killed al-Aswad was Fairûz ibn-ad-Dailami.[1] When both Ḳais and Fairûz at al-Madînah claimed having killed him, ʿUmar pointed to Fairuz saying, "It was this lion who killed him!"

Ḳais suspected of the murder of Dâdhawaih. Ḳais was charged with having killed Dâdhawaih, and abu-Bakr received the information that he was intent on expelling al-Abnâʾ from Ṣanʿâʾ. Abu-Bakr's anger was thereby aroused, and he wrote to al-Muhâjir ibn-abi-Umaiyah at his entry to Ṣanʿâʾ as abu-Bakr's ʿâmil, instructing him to bring Ḳais before him. When Ḳais was brought before abu-Bakr, he was requested by him to swear fifty oaths near the Prophet's pulpit that he did not kill Dâdhawaih. This he did, and was consequently set free by abu-Bakr, who directed him to Syria with those of the Moslems summoned for the invasion of the Greeks.[2]

  1. Mirkhondi, Rauḍat aṣ-Ṣafa, vol. ii, p. 679.
  2. Ar. ar-Rûm = the East Romans, the Byzantines.