War in Islam

War in Islam announced before the people, exhorting them to participate in the campaign. The Tabuk campaign was an important event in the history of Islam. It has been described in great detail in the biographies of the Prophet and in historical accounts. If you study this event, you will be able to appreciate some important principles of the Prophet’s method of war. Two of these principles are as follows: 1. The Prophet’s military action in the course of the Tabuk campaign was for the purpose of defense. It was not an aggressive or offensive attack. From this we learn that Islam does not permit aggressive war. In Islam, war can be resorted to only when it becomes necessary for the purposes of defense. 2. Another principle that we learn from this campaign is that even while taking defensive steps, confrontation is not indispensable. If it is possible that through a show of strength the enemy will step back and abandon its aggressive intentions, then one’s response should remain limited to this show of strength. It is not necessary to go to the extent of military confrontation. This is why, contrary to his general practice, the Prophet made preparations for the Tabuk campaign very openly, rather than silently. As a result of this, even before he reached the Syrian border the Byzantines had received the news that the Prophet, along with 30,000 men who were ready to sacrifice their lives, was advancing towards them. This open expression of strength had its desired effect. The Byzantine monarch was so overawed that he ordered his soldiers to withdraw. When the Prophet heard about this, he also stopped taking any further steps. The general policy of Islam is to abstain from war as far as possible. This policy is in accordance with Islam’s essential purpose, because the purpose of Islam is to rescue people from