Futuhusham_-_The_Islamic_Conquest_of_Syria_-_Al_Waqidi

Part 4: Baytul Muqaddas
These people lived quite recently and were contemporaries of each other. Allah is the
one who saves us from additions and subtractions. Truth is a trust and falsehood is a
betrayal. I swear by Allah besides Whom there is no other deity and Who is the
Knower of the invisible and visible! I have evaluated and narrated these reports on
the conquests on a basis of utter honesty so that I can establish the great value of the
S-ahiibah of Rasulullah Iii and refute the Shi'is who abandon both the Sunnah and
what is obligatory. Allah Most High has willed that were it not for them then those
lands would not have been in the possession of the Muslims and knowledge of this
Din would not have spread. Allah be praised at their deeds! They waged Jihad as it
should be waged, no doubt. The King who has all power has said about them:
Amongst them are those who have fulfilled their vows and
amongst them are those who await. [33:23]
17) Yazid" reachesCaesarea
'Umar ~ had appointed AbU 'Ubaydah ~ over Syria and ordered him to conquer
Aleppo, Antioch, Mafraq and their forts. He sent .Amr bin al-A~ ~ to Egypt and
Yazid bin Abi Sufyan ~ to the Syrian coast. Yazid ~ thus reached Caesarea which
was governed by Constantine, Heraclius's son. He had with him a garrison of80,000
Romans, Christian 'Arabs and North Europeans. When he saw Yazid ~ coming he
requested reinforcements from his father, who sent the governor of Mar'ash with
20,000 North European warriors, and also sent mounts laden with provisions and
fodder.
Yazid ~ felt that he would not be able to overcome them so he wrote to 'Umar ~:
In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.
From: Yazid bin Abi Sufydn, the governor of SW Syria
To : 'Umar bin al-Khatjdb
I have reached Caesarea which I have found to be heavily
garrisoned There is no way of conquering her. Constantine
requested reinforcements from his father who sent him afurther
20,000 troops under the governor of Mar 'ash. He receives
mounts loaded with provisions and fodder daily.
Was-saldm.
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