Abu Ubaidah ibn al-Jarrah

Abu Ubaidah was one of the early converts to Islam who endured oppression at the hands of Quraish at Mecca. He first left to Abyssinia to escape the cruelty from idolaters but later joined the Prophet (PBUH) as he migrated to Medina in 622 CE. Abu Ubaidah took part in the Battle of Badr, the first major battle between the Muslims and the polytheists of Mecca. Amidst the chaos of fighting Abu Ubaidah avoided confronting his father who was fighting alongside the Quraish. But as he gave him no chance of escape he slew his father to save himself.               

Muslim warriors

Abu Ubaidah remained steadfast in the Battle of Uhud trying to defend the Prophet when the Muslims were being ambushed by the enemy from the rear. He participated in the Battle of Trench, the Battle of Banu Quraydah and was made one of the witnesses over the pact signed between Meccans and Muslims at Hudaybiyyah. Not long after the peace agreement, he was part of Muslim’s campaign to Khaybar led by the Prophet (PBUH). In the lifetime of the Prophet, several times he was made the commander of the Muslim forces which defeated the enemy.                

When the Muslim armies marched for the Conquest of Mecca, Abu Ubaidah commanded one of the four Muslim brigades that entered Mecca from four different routes. Later that year, he participated in the Battle of Hunayn and the Siege of Taif. He was also part of Tabuk campaign under the command of the Prophet Muhammad himself (PBUH).     

After the apostasy wars, the Caliph Abu Bakr sent Abu Ubaidah as commander of the Muslim battalion to Syria and Palestine. There he was joined by Khalid ibn al-Waleed and his forces at Busra. Not long after the Battle of Busra in which the Christians lost 8000 soldiers the Muslims heard a gathering of 90,000 Roman troops at Ajnadayn. The Muslim forces comprised of just 32,000 men in the battle array. However the Battle of Ajnadyn was a decisive victory for Muslims in which the Byzantine Romans lost nearly 50,000 warriors. Surprisingly the Muslims only lost 450 men in the battle. After defeating the Roman reinforcements sent by Emperor Heraclius in another battle the Muslims conquered the city of Damascus. Heraclius ambitious plan to take back Syria failed when a 400,000 strong Roman army was shattered by a less formidable force of 40,000 Muslims at Yarmouk. The Battle of Yarmouk was a severe blow to the Christian Romans as their dead numbered 100,000 soldiers. Not long after this, the combined forces of Abu Ubaidah and Khalid moved from one success to another. Major cities such as Antioch, Aleppo and Jerusalem fell to the Muslims and Abu Ubaidah’s forces advanced into Armenia and Anatolia bringing one victory after another.                

.............................................................
Written by: Ibrahim Nazim
7 March 2011, Monday
2 Raby`al-THaany 1432