iamgenius:

Apostates were to be killed whether treason is connected or not.

Greater Apostasy

Major apostasy is when a person embraces Islam and later leaves the religion while combining this with the political crime of treason. Legal punishment against such persons can only be carried out by a lawful authority according to due process, and it is not permissible for individual Muslims to carry out this punishment on their own.

The presence of political treason as a condition for punishment is made clear in an authentic tradition.

Abdullah ibn Mas’ud reported: The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, applied legal punishment in the following case:


وَالتَّارِكُ لِدِينِهِ الْمُفَارِقُ لِلْجَمَاعَةِ

The one who leaves his religion and separates from the community.

Source: Sahih Muslim 1676, Grade: Sahih

The mention of one who “separates from the community” (al-mufariq lil-jama’ah) indicates that a person is not legally punished simply for leaving Islam, but rather for high treason against the Muslim community. This phrase is associated in other traditions with rejecting loyalty to the Muslim authority.


Ibn Umar reported: The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, said:

مَنْ خَلَعَ يَدًا مِنْ طَاعَةٍ لَقِيَ اللَّهَ يَوْمَ الْقِيَامَةِ لَا حُجَّةَ لَهُ وَمَنْ مَاتَ وَلَيْسَ فِي عُنُقِهِ بَيْعَةٌ مَاتَ مِيتَةً جَاهِلِيَّةً

One who withdraws his obedience will meet Allah on the Day of Resurrection without an argument for him, and whoever dies without swearing allegiance will have died in ignorance.

Source: Sahih Muslim 1851, Grade: Sahih



In another version of this narration, the Prophet said:

وَمَنْ مَاتَ وَهُوَ مَفَارِقٌ لِلْجَمَاعَةِ فَإِنَّهُ يَمُوتُ مِيتَةً جَاهِلِيَّةً

Whoever dies while he has separated from the community (al-mufariq lil-jama’ah), then he has died in ignorance.

Source: Musnad Ahmad 5526, Grade: Sahih



Indeed, some of the companions interpreted the phrase this way and described an apostate as:

حَارَبَ اللَّهَ وَرَسُولَهُ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ

One who wages war against Allah and His Messenger.

Source: Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī 4334, Grade: Sahih



From these traditions we can infer that one who “separates from the community” refers to one who “withdraws his obedience,” a treasonous action, not simply leaving the community as the bedouin of Medina had done.

The connection between apostasy and treason is made even clearer in a tradition in which the Prophet describes the major apostate as:

رَجُلٌ يَخْرُجُ مِنَ الإِسْلاَمِ يُحَارِبُ اللَّهَ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ وَرَسُولَهُ

A man who rejects Islam and wages war against Allah the Exalted and His Messenger.

Source: Sunan An-Nasa’i 4048



The companions understood this type of apostasy to involve war and sedition against the community.

Ibn Abbas said:

فَمَنْ قَتَلَ وَأَفْسَدَ فِي الأَرْضِ وَحَارَبَ اللَّهَ وَرَسُولَهُ ثُمَّ لَحِقَ بِالْكُفَّارِ قَبْلَ أَنْ يُقْدَرَ عَلَيْهِ لَمْ يَمْنَعْهُ ذَلِكَ أَنْ يُقَامَ فِيهِ الْحَدُّ الَّذِي أَصَابَ

Whoever kills others, spreads corruption in the land, wages war against Allah and His Messenger, and joins the unbelievers before he is subdued, then there is nothing to prevent the legal punishment from being applied to him because of what he did.

Source: Sunan An-Nasa’i 4046, Grade: Sahih




Therefore, the death penalty was justified against such rebels who rejected lawful authority and committed treason against the community. This seemed to be implicitly understood by the early scholars, such as Imam Muslim who entitled a chapter of his Sahih:

بَاب حُكْمِ الْمُحَارِبِينَ وَالْمُرْتَدِينَ

The ruling of those who wage war and commit apostasy.

AbdelKabir:



This has been rendered usesless as Abu bakr fought and killed apostates, so tell me again, were they the Jews that were pretending?

# Which "Apostates" did he murdered?! Those believers who refused to pay Zakat to him. That killings were murder because it is 100% against the Sunnah of Muhammad.

* Do yourself a little research in your book of Bukhari (we can surely help you out), and see how Nabi treated those who refused to pay Zakat compare Abubakar's decision.

SOMETIMES RULING OF APOSTASY IS A FRAUD


# ABUBAKAR'S RULING

Narrated Abu Huraira:

When Allah's Messenger (s) died and Abu Bakr became the caliph some Arabs renegade (reverted to disbelief) (Abu Bakr decided to declare war against them), `Umar, said to Abu Bakr, "How can you fight with these people although Allah's Messenger (s) said, 'I have been ordered (by Allah) to fight the people till they say: "None has the right to be worshipped but Allah, and whoever said it then he will save his life and property from me except on trespassing the law (rights and conditions for which he will be punished justly), and his accounts will be with Allah.' " Abu Bakr said, "By Allah! I will fight those who differentiate between the prayer and the Zakat as Zakat is the compulsory right to be taken from the property (according to Allah's orders) By Allah! If they refuse to pay me even a she-kid which they used to pay at the time of Allah's Messenger ( s) . I would fight with
them for withholding it" Then `Umar said, "By Allah, it was
nothing, but Allah opened Abu Bakr's chest towards the
decision (to fight) and I came to know that his decision was
right."

Reference : Sahih al-Bukhari 1399, 1400
In-book reference : Book 24, Hadith 5
USC-MSA web (English) reference : Vol. 2, Book 24, Hadith 483
https://sunnah.com/bukhari/24/5


1. Why would Abu Hurairah labeled those believers "apostates"? Was it because of their refusal to pay their Zakat to Abubakar?

2. Interestingly, Umar Ibn al-Khattab did not agreed with Abubakar's decision who brought out a sound argument at first. Funnily, when Umar later agreed with Abubakar, his argument was laughable. He was reported to have said, " By Allah, it was nothing, but Allah opened Abu Bakr's chest towards the decision (to fight)"

Does Umar received wahy to make such confirmation?



# NABI MUHAMMAD's Judgement on Zakat's refusals:


Narrated Abu Huraira:

Allah's Messenger (s ) (p.b.u.h) ordered (a person) to collect Zakat, and that person returned and told him that Ibn Jamil, Khalid bin Al-Walid, and `Abbas bin `Abdul Muttalib had refused to give Zakat." The Prophet said, "What made Ibn Jamil refuse to give Zakat though he was a poor man, and was made wealthy by Allah and His Apostle ? But you are unfair in asking Zakat from Khalid as he is keeping his armor for Allah's Cause (for Jihad). As for `Abbas bin `Abdul Muttalib, he is the uncle of Allah's Apostle (p.b.u.h) and Zakat is compulsory on him and he should pay it double."

Reference : Sahih al-Bukhari 1468
In-book reference : Book 24, Hadith 71
USC-MSA web (English) reference : Vol. 2, Book 24, Hadith 547
https://sunnah.com/bukhari/24/71