Ali Ibn Abi Talib - Volume 1 of 2

'Ali ibn Abi @lib 555
entitled to this matter than me, but do you not how that 'Uthm2n
was killed unlawfully and I am his cousin and the one who is seeking
vengeance for his blood? So go to him and tell him: Let him hand
over to me the killers of 'Uthmin, and I will follow him." They went
to 'Ali and spoke to him, but he did not agree to hand them over?'
According to another report, they went and spoke to him, and he said:
"Let him swear allegiance first and leave these people for me to deal
with them," but Mu'iwiyah refused.42
There are reports depicting Mu'iwiyah's refusal to obey as
being because of his ambitions and worldly aspirations, and because
of enmity and competition between Banu HLhim and Banu
Umayyah dating back to pre-Islamic times. In addition, there are
other slanders, fabrications and attempts to undennine the
Companions of the Messenger of Allah (may Allah be pleased with
them all). Some contemporary writers - such as al-'Aqqid in
'Abqaiiyyat 'Ali and 'Abdul-'Azeez al-Doori in Muqaddimah ji
Tareekh Sadr al-Islam - relied on these reports and based their false
notions on them. The trnth is that all of these reports are worthless,
and their narrators were criticised, either because they were not of
good character or they were confused?3
The province of Syria remained under the control of
Mu'iwiyah ibn Abi Sufyk (&) throughout the caliphate of 'Ali
(&); he was not able to gain control of it or to appoint governors or
commanders over it. There were some clashes in the eastern part of
Syria between the troops of 'Ali (&) and the iroops of Mu'2wiyah
(&). The most significant of these was the battle of Siffeen in 37
AH, at which both 'Ali and Mu'iwiyah (may Allah be pleased with
them both) were present. None of these battles put a stop to
MuC2wiyah's continued domination of ~yria.~~