The Mission to Dhat Al-Salasil

This expedition was named after the stream and the tract of land where the Muslim troops camped, and took place in Jamadi Al-Akhir, 8 A.H.

The Pro-Roman stand of the Syrian Arabs during the engagement of Muta had proved to be nearly disastrous for the Muslims, and the Prophet decided that they had to be neutralised. To this end, one month after the encounter at Muta, he dispatched a delegation of three-hundred men under Amr bin Aas . Thirty horses were also sent with the men, whose mission was to win over the Bala clan, to which Amr’s paternal grandmother belonged. If they failed to secure a guarantee of neutrality in future conflicts, the Muslims were to launch a punitive strike against the Bala for siding with the Romans.

As Amr and his men drew near Syria, they learned that the Syrians were already massing a sizeable army of their own. Amr sent for reinforcements, and the Prophet accordingly sent two hundred prominent fighters headed by Ubaydah bin Jarrah, but Amr bin Aas remained Commander-in-Chief and Imam.

After the arrival of the reinforcements, the Muslim troops overran a large area of Qadaa. When they came across an enemy detachment, they attacked, and the enemy scattered.