Chapter 30: Trench
In the 5th year of Hijri - news came to the Prophet (SAW) that the enemies were coming to Medina.
This time it was a group of not just the Quraysh of Makkah but also the tribe of Bani Nadir, Bani Ghatafan, Bani Sulaym and Bani Asad.
It is assumed around 10,000 enemies vs 3000 Muslims.
This time Prophet (SAW) took the advice of Salman Farsi to dig a trench around Medina to stop the invaders from entering Medina.
It was very hard work to dig the trench.
At one time the companions came across a big rock that they could not break. Prophet (SAW) took the pick and struck it.
At the first strike a portion of the rock broke with a bright flash of light.
With the second strike another portion of the rock broke off with another bright flash of light.
Finally with the third strike the rock shattered with another bright flash of light.
Prophet (SAW) explained what he saw with the flashes of light:
1st Flash - He saw the future victory of Muslims over the Persian Empire.
2nd Flash - He saw the future victory of Muslims over the Roman Empire.
3rd Flash - He saw the future where the message of Islam would reach every corner of the world.
These prophecies made the believers hopeful - while the hypocrites laughed at these predictions - seeing they were about to be attacked by an army 3 times their size.
When the enemies arrived at Medina - they found the trench was ready. They could not jump over it with their horses.
At a narrow point of the trench - one of the enemies best warrior called Amr ibn Abd Wudd managed to get in.
Amr ibn Abd Wudd was a very famous fighter. People used to say he was equal to a thousand men in battle. He entered and challenged the Muslims to stand up and fight with him.
Most were afraid when they knew it was Amr ibn Abd Wudd challenging them.
It was then than Ali (RA) accepted the challenge and a fierce duel took place.
Eventually Ali (RA) was victorious and that helped the muslims feel confident while the news of Amr's defeat made the enemy weak.
The enemy while camped outside of Medina tried to look for allies inside Medina - Banu Qurayza was supporting them.
In one part of the city of Medina there was a fortress called Fortress of Banu Haritha - here members of Banu Qurayza attacked the muslim women who were in shelter there.
Safiya bint Abdul Mutallib the aunty of Prophet (SAW) killed the soldiers of Banu Qurayza and defended the fortress.
The Muslims used their diplomat Nuaym ibn Masud to break the bond between Banu Qurayza and the Quraysh.
The Quraysh could not enter Medina by force and doubts were formed on the alliance with Banu Qurayza.
For several weeks the Quraysh created a siege on Medina, when at the end they got impatient and were preparing a final attack.
At this point Allah (SWT) sent a powerful wind that upturned the enemy camps.
The Quraysh finally gave up - defeated they returned back to Makkah.