The treatment of prisoners of war, as laid down in the Holy Qur’ān and Ḥadīth, also bears evidence of the fact that the idea of enforcement of Islām by the sword is entirely foreign to the conception of Islamic warfare. If the wars, during the time of the Holy Prophet or early Caliphate, had been prompted by the desire of propagating Islām by force, this object could easily have been attained by forcing Islām upon prisoners of war who fell into the hands of the Muslims. Yet this the Holy Qur’ān does not allow, expressly laying down that they must be set free: “So when you meet in battle those who disbelieve, smite the necks; then when you have overcome them, make (them) prisoners, and afterwards (set them free) as a favour or for ransom until the war lays down its burdens” (47:4). It will be seen from this that the taking of prisoners was allowed only as long as war conditions prevailed; and even when the prisoners are taken they cannot be kept so permanently, but must be set free either as a favour or at the utmost by taking ransom. The Holy Prophet carried this injunction into practice in his lifetime.14 In the battle of Ḥunain, six thousand prisoners of the Ḥawāzin tribe were taken, and they were all set free simply as an act of favour (Bu. 40:7; IJ-H. III, p. 132). A hundred families of Banī Mustaliq were taken as prisoners in the battle of Muraisī‘, and they were also set at liberty without ransom being paid (IJ-H. III, p. 66). Seventy prisoners were taken in the battle of Badr, and it was only in this case that ransom was exacted, but the prisoners were granted their freedom while war with the Quraish was yet in progress (AD. 15:122; Ah. I, p. 30). The form of ransom adopted in the case of some of these prisoners was that they should be entrusted with some work connected with teaching (Ah. I, p. 247; ZI, p. 534). When war ceased and peace was established, all war-prisoners would have to be set free, according to the verse quoted above.
This verse also abolishes slavery forever. Slavery was generally brought about through raids by stronger tribes upon weaker ones. Islām did not allow raids or the making of prisoners by means of
14 In spite of the clear injunction of the Holy Qur’ān to set free all prisoners, and the practice of the Holy Prophet who never killed a single prisoner of war and generally set them free as an act of favour, the Rev. Klein writes in The Religion of Islam: “Unbelievers taken in war, except idolaters of Arabia and apostates who must be killed, who do not embrace Islām may either be killed, or made captive … or be granted their liberty on condition of their becoming Zimmis” (p. 179). This is an entirely baseless statement.