the Turks' victory at Balanjar — the killing of 'Abd al-Rahman ibn Rabi'a (32 AH)

Name: the Turks' victory at Balanjar — the killing of 'Abd al-Rahman ibn Rabi'a (32 AH)
Start: 0652

ظفر الترك وقتل عبد الرحمن بن ربيعة

652 CE · 32 AH

Balanjar: the Turks and Khazars, after testing that Muslims could bleed, turned on the invaders; 'Uthman's letter — «the flock has grown fat with ease; do not lead them into peril« — came too late or went unheeded, and 'Abd al-Rahman ibn Rabi'a, called Dhu'l-Nur after his sword, was killed before the town, his body kept by its people in a coffin they prayed with for rain. The army split in flight — one part reaching Salman ibn Rabi'a at the Bab, another Salman al-Farisi (may God be pleased with him) and Abu Hurayra (may God be pleased with him) in Yilan and Jurjan. When the Kufans and Syrians nearly came to blows over command, the Kufans answered the Syrians' threat to strike Salman: «then we shall strike Habib and jail him« ¹.

Depth

At a glance

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In time

The Rashidun Caliphate · The Umayyad Period

Overview

The Turks and Khazars broke the Muslims and killed 'Abd al-Rahman b. Rabi'a, called Dhu'l-Nur after his sword. As the raids mounted the Turks grumbled — "we were a people unmatched until this small nation came" — and, some saying these men do not die, ambushed them in the thickets. 'Uthman had written 'Abd al-Rahman at the Gate: "the subjects have been spoiled by ease — do not fling the Muslims in, for I fear they will be slaughtered." He pressed on toward Balanjar anyway; they fought a bitter fight and he was killed, and the people of Balanjar put his body in a coffin they prayed for rain by. The army broke in two — those who met his brother Salman b. Rabi'a escaped, and those who fled toward Yilan and Jurjan included Salman al-Farisi and Abu Hurayra ².

Connections

Explore the connections

Occurred at: Balanjar
Had participant: Abd al-Rahman ibn Rabia· Salman ibn Rabi'a al-Bahili· Habib ibn Maslama al-Fihri

People and things also explored

The Defeat at Balanjar (32 AH)· the Armenia–Azerbaijan treaty (25 AH)· Battle of the Yarmuk· The Conquest of Antioch· The Conquest of Harran· The Taking of Qaliqala and the Opening of Armenia· The Conquest of Shimshat· The Death of Habib ibn Maslama at Damascus

Sources

al-Kamil fi'l-Tarikh of Ibn al-Athir , p. 503-504
al-Kamil fi'l-Tarikh of Ibn al-Athir

Cite this page

islam.museum contributors. “the Turks' victory at Balanjar — the killing of 'Abd al-Rahman ibn Rabi'a (32 AH)”. islam.museum, https://islam.museum/en/event/zafar-turk-balanjar/. CC BY-SA 4.0. Last updated 2026-10-22.

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The Defeat at Balanjar (32 AH)

The Balanjar disaster (AH 32): against Uthman's written warning not to plunge the army in, Abd al-Rahman ibn Rabi'a marched on Balanjar beyond Derbent and was killed — the Khazars kept his body in a coffin for rain-prayers; Salman ibn Rabi'a's relief column gathered the fugitives, among them Salman al-Farisi and Abu Hurayra, in the first Khazar triumph over the Muslim frontier.