The occasion of the Prophet's (peace and blessings be upon him) saying, "Go, for you are free"

Question:
One of the brothers sent a question asking: What is the occasion of the Messenger's (peace and blessings be upon him) saying, and when did it happen? "Go, for you are free."

Answer:
The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said this when Allah opened Makkah for him. Makkah came under the authority of the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him), and the people of Makkah also came under the authority of the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him). They gathered in the Sacred Mosque, and the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) was inside the Ka'bah removing the images and the harm that the disbelievers had hung in it, purifying it. Then he (peace and blessings be upon him) came out to the people of Makkah, who were gathered in the Sacred Mosque, holding the ring of the door, and said: "O people of Makkah, what do you think I will do with you?" Meaning, after they had harmed him, oppressed him, and expelled him from Makkah, and he emigrated to Madinah. Makkah is the most beloved of lands to the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him). When he left it, he stood and said: "By Allah, you are the most beloved of lands to me, and were it not that your people expelled me from you, I would not have left." So Allah opened Makkah for him in the tenth year of the Hijrah, the great conquest, the Conquest.
So he said: "O people of Makkah, what do you think I will do with you?" After they had harmed him, oppressed him, expelled him from Makkah, and stood in the way of the call, the call of the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him). What do you think I will do with you? Meaning, to punish them. And had he done with them what he did, it would have been his right, peace and blessings be upon him. They said: "Good, a noble brother and the son of a noble brother." So he said: "Go, for you are free." So he (peace and blessings be upon him) pardoned them all and forgave them. Yes.