Hudna

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Hudna is an Arabic term which means a temporary ceasefire for tactical reasons. According to Shafi'i jurisprudence, hudnas should be limited to 10 years.

The term was first used in the conflict between Muhammad and the Quraysh tribe, in a treaty known as the Treaty of Hudaybiyah.

In 628, Muhammad and perhaps a thousand of his followers approached Mecca, declaring that they would participate in the hajj. Negotiations between the Quraysh and Muhammad took place at Hudaybiyyah. The resulting treaty required Muhammad to withdraw from Mecca without completing the hajj that year. The following year, the Quraysh would evacuate Mecca long enough to permit Muhammad and his followers to complete the hajj. The two parties agreed to a 10 year truce whose terms were as follows:

• Muhammad and his followers would return to Medina, and perform no pilgrimage that year.

• There would be peace between the Muslims and the Quraysh for a period of ten years from the date of the signing of the treaty.

• Meccans who accepted Islam and fled to Medina would be extradited to Mecca; however, (ex-)Muslims fleeing to Medina would not be extradited to the Muslims.

• The Bedouin tribes would be free to enter into any treaty with either party.

• Muslims would be allowed to visit Makkah to perform the pilgrimage the following year, but not to stay in the city for more than three days, nor to bring any weapon other than their swords in the scabbards.

Two years later, in 630, a skirmish between the bedouin and the Quraysh occurred; Muhammad considered this to consitute a breach of the treaty. Muhammad and his followers, numbering 10,000 strong, marched upon Mecca and demanded the surrender of the city, which capitulated.

The Shafi'i school of Sharia (Muslim jurisprudence), which is the dominant Sunni school of jurisprudence in the Levant, teaches that "if Muslims are weak, a truce may be made for ten years if necessary, for the Prophet (Allah bless him and give him peace) made a truce with the Quraysh for that long, as is related by Abu Dawud" ('Umdat as-Salik, o9.16).

See also:

• Al-Aqsa Intifada
• Hamas
• History of Islam
• List of Islamic terms in Arabic
• Muhammad
• The Israeli-Palestinian conflict