Explanation of the author's statement: "… he fights the people of a town who abandoned them …"

The Shaykh : The author (may Allah have mercy on him) said in the new lesson: "He fights the people of a town who abandoned them". He fights the people of a town who abandoned them. Who fights them? The Imam fights them. Until when? Until they give the call to prayer. This fighting is not a fighting that permits taking their lives, but rather a fighting in the category of discretionary punishment to establish this obligation. For this reason, one does not pursue those who flee from them; that is, if one of them runs away, we do not chase him and kill him. Nor do we finish off their wounded; if we find one of them wounded during the fighting, we do not complete the killing of him. Nor do we take their wealth as spoils, nor do we take their children as captives, because they are Muslims. They are only fought in the category of discretionary punishment for abandoning this manifest symbol of the symbols of Islam. The evidence for this is that the adhan and the iqamah are the signs of the land of Islam. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), when he campaigned against a people, would wait until the time for prayer came. If he heard the adhan, he would hold back from them. If he did not hear the adhan, he would fight them. This indicates that the adhan and the iqamah are among the manifest signs of the religion of Islam. The author's statement "abandoned them" may mean that they abandoned both, or it may mean that they abandoned one of them. If they abandoned both, the matter is clear that they are to be fought. But if they abandoned one of them, if it is the adhan, fighting them is also clear, because the adhan is among the manifest signs. If it is the iqamah, it is possible that they are to be fought as well, because it is a manifest sign, but it is not like the adhan, due to the saying of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him): This indicates that the iqamah is a manifest sign that is heard. It is also possible that they are not to be fought. If someone asks, "How can they be fought when the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: " We say there is a difference between killing and fighting. Not everyone whom it is permissible to fight is necessarily permitted to be killed. Not everyone whom it is permissible to fight is permitted to be killed. For this reason, one fights one of the two warring factions until they return to the command of Allah, even though they are believers, they are not killed. As for killing, it does not necessarily imply fighting, due to the generality of the term. It may be that one of these people has earned the right to be killed, so we kill him and do not fight the people. Thus, it becomes clear that there is no necessary connection between fighting and killing, and that the permissibility of fighting is broader than the permissibility of killing, because killing is not permissible except in specific, particular matters, unlike fighting. "He fights the people of a town who abandoned them"