Lessons from Umar ibn al-Khattab – The Treaty of Umar

In the year 638, when the Muslim armies under the command of Khalid ibn al-Walid and Amr ibn al-As besieged Jerusalem, the Patriarch Sophronius, a representative of the Byzantine Empire government and a leader of the Church of the Holy Sepulcher, was in charge of the city. After months of siege Sophronius of Jerusalem, realizing that resistance was pointless, decided to surrender. ??

However, Sophronius had one condition: he would surrender only if the Caliph Umar ibn al-Khattab RA came to Jerusalem himself to receive the keys, accept the surrender, and sign a peace pact. When this message was relayed to Umar al-Khattab in Medina, there were differences of opinion amongst his close companions and advisors whether or not he should accept this condition. Ali bin Abi Talib RA, who was renowned for his wisdom, advised Umar that Jerusalem was as much sacred to the Muslims as it was to the Jews or the Christians, and that in view of the sanctity of the place it was desirable that its surrender should be received by the Caliph personally. Umar ibn al-Khattab accepted Ali’s advice and took a trip to Jerusalem.

It is reported that when he along with his aide were some distance from the city, he was met by some of his erstwhile companions now stationed with the army besieging Jerusalem. He was covered in dust and grime of his long travel. It was difficult to distinguish him from his aide who accompanied him. They asked if Umar al-Khattab – the Amir-ul Momineen (leader of the faithful) would like to change into some armoured gears or clothing or a head gear befitting his stature and the occasion. Umar RA responded with one of the most famous replies, and thereafter often quoted statement by successive leaders: “We are a people who God has honored through Islam. When we seek it through anything else, God will humiliate us”. This reply silenced everyone, and he proceeded to the gates of the city to accept its surrender at his hands while people lined up along its streets to have a look at him.

People looked at Umar, bare-headed in his dust-laden worn-out attire, and mumbled, what in the world is this? Who is this man? What is this religion? What are these ethics? The people started to praise the humility of their conqueror - this man is different, the most powerful man of moment and this is the way that he carries himself. And Sophronius, the patriarch, he said, “to a man like this, Jerusalem is happily handed over”. He said to Umar he wasn't just praising him, but “with a leader like you, your people will never be defeated”.

The people of Jerusalem then watched the entire ceremony unfold before their eyes. The bloodless transition of power, handing over of the keys, the signing of the pact and the covenant of Umar al-Khattab making Jerusalem a city for all people of the book.

The Pact of Umar

“In the name of God, the Merciful, the Compassionate. This is the assurance of safety which the servant of God, Umar, the Commander of the Faithful, has given to the people of Jerusalem. He has given them an assurance of safety for themselves, for their property, their churches, their crosses, the sick and healthy of the city and for all the rituals which belong to their religion. Their churches will not be inhabited by Muslims and will not be destroyed. Neither they, nor the land on which they stand, nor their cross, nor their property will be damaged. They will not be forcibly converted.”

The people of Jerusalem must pay the taxes like the people of other cities and must expel the Byzantines and the robbers. Those who wish may go with the Byzantines and those who wish may return to their families. Nothing is to be taken from them before their harvest is reaped.

If they pay their taxes according to their obligations, then the conditions laid out in this pact are under the covenant of God, are the responsibility of His Prophet, of the caliphs and of the faithful.”

(This is a slightly abridged version. There are some disputes amongst historians whether the entire version of the pact was written at one time on Umar’s instructions, or was it added upon, modified, updated during successive conquests by the Muslim armies in the north, west and the east.)?

While taking over the reins of the city Umar asked the Patriarch how many Jews were there in the city. Upon learning that there were none, as all were forcibly converted or expelled during the Byzantine rule, he ordered that Jews be permitted to return to Jerusalem. Umar is thus credited with repopulating Jerusalem with Jewish settlements and giving access to the site of Temple Mount and the Wailing Wall for worship and their religious rites, nearly after 500 years of oppressive Roman rule. It is thus not surprising that prayers for the welfare of the Caliph were recited in many synagogues in the region. ???

Following the handover of the city, the Patriarch Sophronius took Umar on a tour of the city. When the time for prayer came, Sophronius invited Umar to pray inside the Church, but Umar refused. He said that if he prayed there, later Muslims may use it as an excuse to convert it into a mosque – thereby depriving the Christians of one of its holiest sites. Instead, Umar prayed outside the Church, about 100 feet away to the east, where a mosque called Masjid Umar was built later. The current structure was built in its present shape by the Ayyubid Sultan Salahudin in 1193 to commemorate the prayer of the caliph Omar.