Explanation of the dispute that occurred between 'Abd Allah ibn al-Zubayr and 'Abd al-Malik, and the dispute that occurred between Mu'awiyah and 'Ali (may Allah be pleased with them).

The Shaykh : And we, after more than a thousand and thirty years, are absolutely unable to assert that when Ibn al-Zubayr called for allegiance to him as caliph, he was seeking leadership and not seeking the caliphate for the benefit of the Muslims. Allah knows best his intention. And because these are, first of all, hidden matters of intention, and none knows what is in the breasts except the Knower of the Unseen (Glorified and Exalted is He). But there is no doubt that the uprising of Ibn al-Zubayr was an error from the Islamic perspective. However, there is a great difference between saying it was an intentional error, as Ibn 'Umar said out of love for leadership, in which case he would be sinful, God forbid, and between it being an error due to his independent legal reasoning (ijtihad), in which case he would be rewarded with one reward. And so we say regarding the previous dispute from which this dispute and others resulted, namely the dispute between Mu'awiyah and 'Ali and the severe fighting that took place between the two groups in the Battle of Siffin, unfortunately, two armies of Muslims fought a very strange battle. We are unable to assert that Mu'awiyah was also seeking leadership. It is possible that he was, because he was not infallible, even though he was a scribe of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) or one of the Prophet's scribes. And it is possible that he was a scholar exercising independent legal reasoning and that he did not intend to rebel against the one who was pledged allegiance to as caliph, namely 'Ali ibn Abi Talib, out of love for leadership.