Islamiyat · May / June 2022 · Paper 22 · Question 4

caliph.

Use the AO1 Levels of Response

Candidates may include some of the following information. All other relevant information must be credited.

Candidates do not need to write about the causes of the rebellion in Madina, in any great detail in answer to this question, though some may refer to it and the account should be read as development of the answer.

Candidates need to state that as the rebellion in Madina intensified and the rebels surrounded the house of the caliph ʿAli, Talha and Zubayr sent their sons to guard ʿUthman’s door from any direct assault. When the rebels got the news that an elite force dispatched from Syria was 120 km from Madina they decided to act.

They first attacked the caliph’s house which was bravely defended by Hasan, ʿAli’s son, and Muhammad, Talha’s son. Marwan and his troops offered some resistance but were outnumbered and Marwan was seriously wounded. In the fight that followed, the rebels led by Muhammad ibn Abu Bakr reached ʿUthman just as the call for Friday prayer was being given. He was alone in his room with his wife Naila, reading the Qur’an. As the rebel’s sword pierced his forehead, drops of his blood fell on Verse 137 of Sura al Baqarah. ʿUthman’s wife threw herself over his body to protect it from indignity and did not move even after two of her fingers were sliced off.

After ʿUthman’s death ʿAli was recognised as caliph by the Muslims of Madina and the rebels. He was the only figure trusted by the different groups of Muslims. The public ceremony took place in the Prophet’s mosque, in 656, where the faithful pledged their loyalty to ʿAli. Both Talha and Zubayr also swore the oath of allegiance to ʿAli.

Why do you think ʿAli encountered so much opposition after becoming

caliph?

Use the AO2 Levels of Response

Candidates may include some of the following information. All other relevant information must be credited.

Candidates need to give their views in answer to this question.

Candidates could give one view and discuss it or give more than one view. It could be said that ʿAli had to face strong opposition soon after becoming caliph because of the new officials that he appointed which aggrieved those removed as well as their supporters.

ʿAli was under pressure from many of the Companions. Talha, Zubayr and ʿAisha believed that the killers of ʿUthman should be promptly brought to justice. ʿAli’s decision to postpone this matter created discontent against him. Mu’awiya the governor of Syria refused to step down from his post till the assassins of ʿUthman, his cousin, had been brought to justice and this led to serious consequences for ʿAli.