Ali Ibn Abi Talib - Volume 2 of 2

178 The Battles of the Camel and Siffeen, and the issue of arbitration
have obliterated the sign of the night [with darkness] while We have
made the sign of the day illuminating) (Qur'an 17: 12). Depart, for by
Allah you will never do any work for me." The narrator said: "I heard
that he was killed fighting for Mu'iwiyah at ~iffeen."~~'
'Ali (4) stood over the slain of his party and the slain of
Mu'iwiyah's party and said: "May Allah forgive you, may AUah
forgive you," for both parties.651 It was narrated that Yazeed ibn al-
A~amm said: "When the peace deal was agreed between 'Ali and
Mu'iwiyah, 'Ali went out andwalked among the slain of his party
and said: 'They are in paradise.' Then he went to the slain of
Mu'iwiyah's party and said: 'They are in paradise, then judgement
will be passed between me and ~ u'iwi~ah."'~~~ He used to say of
them that they were believers.653 What 'Ali (&) said about the
people who were killed at Siffeen was not much different from what
he said about the people who were killed at the Battle of the
camel.654
2.2.13. Attitude of Mu'swiyah towards
the Byzantine ruler
The rnler of Byzantium tried to take advantage of the
difference of opinion that occurred between Amir al-Mu'mineen 'Ali
and Mu'Swiyah (may Allah be pleased with them both) by acquiring
some of the lands that were under Mu'iiwiyah's control. Ibn Katheer
said: "The rnler of Byzantium got his hopes up of attacking
Mu'gwiyah, after Mu'iwiyah had scared and humiliated him and had
defeated him and his troops. When the rnler of Byzantium saw that
Mu'iwiyah was preoccupied with fighting 'Ali (&), he marched to
some Muslim territory with a large number of troops, hoping to gain
control of it. Mu'iwiyah wrote to him, saying: 'By Allah, if you do
not give up and go back to your own country, 0 cursed one, I shall
reconcile with my cousin against you, and I shall drive you from all