Surah At-Tawba (9) — Ayah 12

(Ayah12) ➊ {وَ اِنْ نَّكَثُوْۤا اَيْمَانَهُمْ … :} That is, those people whose condition is such that not only do they make a treaty with you and then break it, but they also mock your religion, criticize it, and find faults in it—know that these are the {’’ اَىِٕمَّةَ الْكُفْرِ ‘‘} (leaders of disbelief). Their oaths are of no value, therefore, without giving these people any opportunity, fight them so that the sharpness of your swords may make them desist from their actions. It is evident from this that one who mocks the religion of Islam and insults the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) is deserving of death. Although the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) fought all disbelievers, he especially took care to have those who mocked the religion, insulted Islam and Muslims, and insulted him (peace be upon him) killed. The incidents of having Ka'b bin Ashraf the Jew and Abu Rafi' the Jew, etc., killed through assassination missions are clear examples of this. Declaring the blood of the foul-mouthed as forfeit on the occasion of the conquest of Makkah is also an example of this. If, after the disbelievers break their treaties, war is not waged against them, it would be an extreme expression of weakness, humiliation, and lack of honor on the part of the Muslims. That is why the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) did not forgive those who broke treaties, but rather immediately brought them to their end. The actions of the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) against Banu Qurayza and the people of Makkah for breaking treaties are shining examples of this. However, it is unfortunate that today, despite the disbelievers breaking all their treaties, Muslim rulers are afraid of them and remain silent.

➋ { اِنَّهُمْ لَاۤ اَيْمَانَ لَهُمْ:} The mention by Allah Almighty that the treaties and covenants of the disbelievers are not to be trusted is indeed a reality, the proof of which is the Christians erasing every trace of Muslims from Andalusia, and the treatment that the Tatars meted out to Muslims, especially the Muslims of Baghdad in 656 AH (1258 CE), and what the Hindus and Sikhs did to the Muslims migrating to Pakistan, and what they are still doing to the Muslims of Kashmir and India, and what Russia and other communist states did to erase every trace of Islam and Muslims, and now what America, Europe, and the entire world of disbelief are doing to the Muslims of Iraq, Afghanistan, and Pakistan, and by fabricating false accusations, have cast aside all the treaties made through the United Nations and are destroying Islam and Muslims—these are all clear examples of the treaties of the disbelievers being of no value.

12. 1. Ayman is the plural of yamin, which means oath. Aimmah is the plural of imam. It refers to leaders and chiefs. The meaning is that if these people break their covenant and speak ill of the religion, then even if they outwardly swear oaths, these oaths have no value. Fight against these leaders of disbelief; perhaps in this way they will refrain from their disbelief. From this, the Hanafi scholars have deduced that if a dhimmi (a non-Muslim residing in an Islamic state) does not break the covenant but does speak ill of Islam, he will not be killed, because the Quran has mentioned two things as reasons for fighting him. Therefore, until both things occur, he will not be deserving of being fought. However, Imam Malik, Imam Shafi'i, and other scholars consider speaking ill of the religion as also breaking the covenant, so according to them, both things are included in this, thus the killing of such a dhimmi is permissible. Similarly, in the case of breaking the covenant, killing is also permissible. (Fath al-Qadeer)

But if they break their oaths after making a covenant and attack your religion, then fight the leaders of disbelief [11]—for surely, their oaths mean nothing—so that they may desist.

[11]
The Hostile Activities of the Dhimmis:

Within the meaning of this verse are included those disbelieving and polytheist tribes who, before the declaration of disavowal, used to break their covenants and mock the religion, as well as those who, after the declaration of disavowal, apparently accepted Islam but their hearts were never inclined towards Islam. Rather, they accepted Islam only due to temporary expediency and under the pressure of the Muslims’ dominance, and were waiting for a suitable opportunity so that if they saw any weakness in Islam, they would break their pledge of accepting Islam. During the lifetime of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ, they did not get such an opportunity, but immediately after his ﷺ passing, they broke this pledge and reverted to disbelief, because they thought that whatever dominance and grandeur Islam had achieved was only due to the presence of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ. Thus, immediately after his ﷺ passing, such tribes raised the banner of rebellion with full force, and Sayyiduna Abu Bakr Siddiq ؓ, in accordance with the purport of this verse, suppressed them precisely.

The Punishment for Insulting Prophethood is Death:

Incidentally, from this verse it is also understood that if any dhimmi living under an Islamic government mocks or derides the religion of Islam, their covenant is nullified and it becomes the duty of the Islamic government to suppress them. Also, any dhimmi or any other person who abuses the Messenger of Allah ﷺ or utters any disrespectful words about him ﷺ is liable to be killed, because this is one of the worst forms of mocking the religion.