she knew that she would be killed.' It was she who had cast the hand-mill upon Khalad ibn Suwaid .... Ibn Ishaq says: The Apostle of God had commanded the slaughter of the men who had reached the age of puberty ... Then verily the Apostle of God divided the goods of the Banau Quraizah and their wives and their children among the Muslims ... Then the Apostle of God sent Sa'd bin Zaid the Ansari, brother of the Banu 'Abdi'l Ashhal, with some of the captives of the Banu Quraizah to Najad, and there he bought with them horses and arms. And the Apostle of God chose for himself of their women Rihanah, daughter of 'Amr bin Khanafah ... and she was with the Apostle of God until he died from her, and she was among his concubines. The Apostle of God had proposed to her that he should marry her and cast the veil over her. She said, 'O Apostle of God, on the contrary, leave me among thy slaves, for it is easier for me and for thee. "

After the battle of Badr when the Muslims had cast the bodies of their enemies who had fallen in that engagement into an old ¹ well, while they were on their way back to Medinah with their prisoners, some of the latter were put to death. Ibn Ishaq's account of the matter runs ² thus: "When the Apostle of God was at As Sufra, An Nazr ibnu'l Harith was executed, 'Ali ibn Abi Talib executed him, as some of the learned Meccans have informed me ... Then (Muhammad) went forward till, when he was at 'Arqu'z Zabiyyah, 'Uqbah bin Abi Mu'ait was executed ... When the Apostle of God ordered his execution, 'Uqbah said, 'Who then (will be a guardian) to my little girl, O Muhammad?' He said, 'Hell-fire.'"

The story of the murder of Ka'b ibnu'l Ashraf is thus related in Ibn Hisham's Siratu'r Rasul,³: "Then

Ka'b ibnu'l Ashraf returned to Medinah and praised the beauty of the Muslims' wives until he annoyed them. Accordingly the Apostle of God said, ... 'Who is for me in the matter of Ibnu'l Ashraf?' Muhammad ibn Maslamah, brother of the Banu 'Abdi'l Ashhal, said to him, 'I am for thee in his affair, O Apostle of God: I shall kill him.' He said, 'Then do so, if you are able for it'. Accordingly Muhammad ibn Maslamah returned and waited three days, neither eating nor drinking except what his life depended on. He mentioned this to the Apostle of God? Then the latter prayed, and said to him, 'Why hast thou given up food and drink?' He said, 'O Apostle of God, I spoke to thee a word, and I know not whether I shall accomplish it for thee or not.' (Muhammad) said, 'Verily the attempt is incumbent on thee' ... For his killing there gathered together Muhammad ibn Maslamah and Salkan ibn Salamah ibn Waqsh, and he is Abu Na'ilah, one of the sons of 'Abdu'l Ashhal, and he was foster-brother of Ka'b ibnu'l Ashraf, and 'Abbad ibn Bashr ibn Waqsh, one of the sons of 'Abdu'l Ashhal, and Harith ibn Aus ibn Mu'adh, one of the sons of 'Abdu'l Ashhal, and Abu 'Abs ibn Jabar, one of the sons of Harithah. Before coming to him, they sent Salkan ibn Salamah Abu Na'ilah to the enemy of God, Ka'b ibnu'l Ashraf. He came and conversed with him for a time, and they recited poetry to one another, and Abu Na'ilah kept quoting the poetry. ¹ Then he said, 'Well done, Ibnu'l Ashraf! Verily I have come to thee by reason of a need which I wish to mention to thee: keep it secret for me.' He said, 'I shall do so.' (Abu Na'ilah) said, 'The coming of this man ² has been a calamity to us. Through him have the Arabs ... blocked the roads against us, so that our families have perished and our souls are emaciated, and we have grown thin and our families have grown thin.' Ka'b said, 'As sure as I am Ibnu'l Ashraf, used I not, by God, to assure thee, O Ibn Salamah,