Reports on fleeing from the advancing army

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Umar (may Allah be pleased with them both) that he was in a raiding party. The people began to swerve about in order to flee. He said: "I too was among those who fled. As we fled from the battle we said: 'What are we to do, when we are fleeing from battle and returning having earned the wrath of Allah?' We said: 'Let us go to Madinah and spend the night there so that no one sees us.'" The narrator said: "Then when we came to Madinah we said: 'It would be better if we presented ourselves before the Prophet of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him). If there is room for repentance for us, we will hold to it; and if the matter is otherwise, we will go away.' We sat with the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) before the morning prayer. When he (peace and blessings be upon him) came out, we said: 'O Messenger of Allah, we are among those who fled from battle.' He (peace and blessings be upon him) turned towards us and said: 'Rather, you are those who return to the fight after withdrawing.'" The narrator said: "We drew near to him (peace and blessings be upon him) and kissed his hand and said: 'O Messenger of Allah, we had intended to do such-and-such.' He (peace and blessings be upon him) said: 'I am the fi'ah (the party to which they fall back) of the Muslims.'"

Ibn Sirin said that when news of the martyrdom of Sayyiduna Abu Ubayd al-Thaqafi (may Allah be pleased with him) reached Sayyiduna Umar (may Allah be pleased with him), he (may Allah be pleased with him) said: "Had he fallen back to me, I would have been his fi'ah (the party to which he could fall back)."

Sayyiduna Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) said: "I am the fi'ah (the party to which he can fall back) of every Muslim."

It is narrated from Ibrahim (may Allah have mercy on him) that news reached Sayyiduna Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) that an army had become trapped in Azerbaijan, had shown patience and had all been martyred. He (may Allah be pleased with him) said: "Had they fallen back to me, I would have been their fi'ah (the party to which they could fall back)."

Sayyiduna Ibn Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both) said: "Whoever flees in battle from three is as if he has not fled, and whoever flees from two will be counted as having fled."

Sayyiduna Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) said: "Fleeing from battle is one of the major sins."

Something similar is reported from Sayyiduna Ibn Umar (may Allah be pleased with them both).

Abu al-Bakhtari saw a man fleeing from battle and said: "The heat of Hell is more intense than the heat of the sword."

It is narrated from Abu Uthman that when Sayyiduna Abu Ubayd (may Allah be pleased with him) was martyred and his companions were defeated, Sayyiduna Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) said: "I am your helper."

Al-Hasan (may Allah have mercy on him) said that the Qur'anic verse "And whoever turns his back to them on that day" [Al-Anfal: 16] was revealed concerning the people of Badr.

It is narrated from Abd al-Rahman bin Abi Layla that two men fled from the battlefield of Kufah on the day of Maskan. They came to Sayyiduna Umar (may Allah be pleased with him), who rebuked them and took them severely to task, saying: "You two have come back fleeing?" He then intended to send them off to the battlefield of Basrah, but they said: "O Commander of the Believers (may Allah be pleased with him)! No, rather send us back to the same battlefield from which we fled, so that our repentance may also come from there."