Sayyiduna Uqbah bin Khalid al-Laythi (may Allah be pleased with him) relates: The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) sent out a military expedition, and they raided a people. A man from that people ran off, and a man from the expedition went after him with a drawn sword. The man from that people said: "I am a Muslim! I am a Muslim!" But the pursuer paid no attention to what he said; he struck him and killed him. When this was reported to the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) spoke very severely about it, and word of this reached the killer. The narrator said: While the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) was delivering a sermon, the killer spoke up: "O Messenger of Allah! By Allah, that man only said what he said to save himself from being killed." The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) turned away from him and from the people on his side, and continued his sermon. The narrator said: Then the man stood up again and said: "O Messenger of Allah! That man only said what he said to save himself from being killed." The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) turned away from him and from the people on his side. The man could not restrain himself, until he said it a third time. Then the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) turned towards him, with displeasure showing on his face, and said: "Allah Almighty has refused to allow me to kill a believer." He said this three times.
Abu Ya'la recorded it, and Ahmad recorded it in abridged form, except that he said "Uqbah bin Malik" instead of Sayyiduna Uqbah bin Khalid (may Allah be pleased with him).
Al-Tabarani recorded it in full; its narrators are the narrators of the Sahih, except Bishr bin Asim al-Laythi, who is thiqah (trustworthy).
Hadith Referenceمجمع الزوائد ومنبع الفوائد / كتاب الفتن - أعاذنا الله منها / 12284
Hadith Gradingمحدثین:إسنادہ صحیح
Hadith Takhrij«اخرجه ابو يعلى فى المسند (6829) اخرجه احمد فى المسند (110/4)»