Siege of Jerusalem (636–637)
The siege of Jerusalem (636–637) was part of the Muslim conquest of the Levant and the result of the military efforts of the Rashidun Caliphate against the Byzantine Empire in the year 636–637/38. It began when the Rashidun army, under the command of Abu Ubayda, besieged Jerusalem beginning in November 636. After six months, the Patriarch Sophronius agreed to surrender, on condition that he submit only to the Caliph. In 637 or 638, Caliph Umar (r. 634–644) traveled to Jerusalem in person to receive the submission of the city. The Patriarch thus surrendered to him.
For other sieges laid upon the city of Jerusalem in history, see Siege of Jerusalem.The Muslim conquest of the city solidified Arab control over Palestine, which would not again be threatened until the First Crusade in 1099.
Hadith[edit]
It is believed in Sunni Islam that Muhammad foretold the conquest of Jerusalem in numerous authentic hadiths in various Islamic sources,[32][33] including a narration mentioned in Sahih al-Bukhari in Kitab Al Jizyah Wa'l Mawaada'ah (The Book of Jizya and Storage):
Narrated Auf bin Mali:
I went to the Prophet during the Expedition to Tabuk while he was sitting in a leather tent. He said, "Count six signs that indicate the approach of the End Times: my death, the conquest of Jerusalem, a plague that will afflict you (and kill you in great numbers) as the plague that afflicts sheep..."[34]
The siege of Jerusalem was carried by Abu Ubaidah under Umar in the earliest period of Islam along with Plague of Emmaus. The epidemic is famous in Muslim sources because of the death of many prominent companions of Muhammad.