The Khilafah State Alone Preserves the Rights of non-Muslims,

Whether Christians (Nasarah) or Jews

Hizb ut Tahrir, since it was formed in Jerusalem at the hands of the Mujtahid judge, Taqi al-
Din al-Nabhani, may Allah Almighty have mercy on him, was carrying the call to Muslims
and non-Muslims, throughout day and night, in compliance with the Almighty's saying:
َ َ ً ْ َ َ ْ) ُ َ َ َ , , َ ُ ْ َ , َ ْ ُ َ ْ َ َ َ َ ْ َ َ َ َ َ ٰ َ ْ َ َ َ َ ْ َ ْ َ َ ْ ُ
!‫*ك ِب ِه شيئا و‬ِ ‫ و! ن‬-‫ أ! نعبد ِإ! ا‬1‫اب تعالوا ِإ ِ ٍة سو ٍاء بيننا وبين‬ ِ ‫قل  أهل ال ِكت‬
َ ُ ْ ُ ,B َC ُ َ ْ ) ُ ُ َ ْ , َ َ َ ۚ , ُ ّ ً َ ْ
َ ً ْ َ َ ُ ْ َ َ ,َ
﴾٦٤﴿ ‫ مس ِ@ون‬7ِ ‫دوا‬D‫ ◌ ف ِإن تولوا فقولوا ا‬-‫ا‬ ِ ‫ ِمن د ِون‬7 7 ‫يت ِخذ بعضنا بعضا أر‬
“Say, (O Prophet) ‘O People of the Book! Let us come to common terms: that we will
worship none but Allah, associate none with Him, nor take one another as lords instead of
Allah.’ But if they turn away, then say, ‘Bear witness that we have submitted (to Allah
alone).’” [Sura Al-Imran: 64]
It was and still is, carrying the daw'ah with the intention of reaching its goal of resuming the
Islamic way of life by establishing the Khilafah state that was the focus of everyone's attention
and where the Muslims and non-Muslims enjoy a decent life, which has never been seen under
any other government. Why not, and Allah glory be to Him, is saying to His Honourable
Prophet ‫ﷺ‬:

َ B َ َ ّْ ً َ ْ َ , َ َْ َ َْ َ َ
﴾١٠٧﴿ K L‫ة ِللع ِا‬O‫وما أرسلناك ِإ! ر‬
“We have sent you (O Prophet) only as a mercy for the whole world” [Sura Al-Anbiya'a: 107]
Islam has recommended that the dhimmi be treated well, to be treated gently and assisted in
his affairs, and that Muslims must protect him, protect his wealth and honour, and guarantee
him food, shelter and clothing as the Messenger of Allah ‫ ﷺ‬said:

B ‫كوا ْال َع‬S ‫يض َو ُف‬

And the last commandment of the Prophet ‫ ﷺ‬while he was in his deathbed was:
ً َ ْ َ
‫ل ِق ْب ِط خ ْ^ا‬7ِ ‫ف ْاس َت ْو ُصوا‬
“…Act kindly towards the Copts” [Al-Hakim in Al-Mustadrak]
The dhimmis are citizens of the Islamic state, like the rest of the citizens; they have the right of
being taken care of, the right to protection, the right to the guarantee of life, the right to be
treated kindly, and the right of kindness and gentleness, and they have the right to participate
in the army of Muslims and fight with them, but they do not have a duty to fight, nor the duty
of paying money except the jizyah, so the money that is imposed on Muslims is not imposed
on them, and they have the same justice that is enjoined on Muslims, and they have the right
to ask for justice as Muslims, so the duty of justice towards them is provided in a similar way
as it is to the Muslims, and everyone who carries the citizenship, and has the sufficient
qualifications whether a man or a woman, Muslim or non-Muslim, can be appointed as a
director for any of the fields, or any administration, and to be an employee in it.
Islam has come with several rulings for the dhimmis, including that they are not tempted
against their religion and are not compelled to enter Islam. Rather they are left to practice
what they believe, what they worship and what they eat, and they are not charged with any
type of costs that Muslims are required with, such as jihad and zakat, and taxes when
necessary. And these dhimmis only pay the Jizyah, It was narrated by him ‫ﷺ‬:
َ َ ْ َ َ ْ ْ َ َ َ ْ َ َ َ ْ ُ َ َ ُ َ َB ْ ُ ْ َ ُ , َ ّ B َ ْ َ ْ َ ّ ُ َ ْ َ َ ْ َ ْ َ ُ , َ
‫ن‬l ‫ ومن‬،‫م‬mِ  ‫ وعلي ِه ما عل‬،‫م‬d ‫ ما‬e ،K ‫ا] ف ِإنه ِمن الـمؤ ِم ِن‬ ٍ ِ h‫ ِود ٍي أو ن‬j ‫ ِمن‬k‫و ِإنه من أس‬
َ
َ‫ا‬mْB ‫ َع‬KُB َn ‫ن ُه ! ُي ْف‬, ‫ي ِت ِه َف ِإ‬, ‫ا ِن‬h
َ ْ ‫ي ِت ِه أ ْو َن‬, ‫ ِود‬jُ َ pَ ‫َع‬
“…and whosoever becomes a Muslim whether a Jew or Christian [Nasrani] then surely he
becomes one of the believers, he has what they have, and upon him is what is upon them
(i.e. treated similarly to the Muslims) and whoever remains in their religion whether Jew
or Nasrani he is not forced to change his religion…” [Seerah of Ibn Hisham]
The Jizyah is an amount of money taken from capable male adults, as Allah says:
َ ُ َ ْ ُ ْ ُ ٰ ,n َ
﴾٢٩﴿ ‫ َص ِاغ ُرون‬sْ ‫ ْز َية َعن َي ٍد َو‬Z‫ا‬
7ِ ‫ يعطوا‬v‫ ح‬......
“… until they pay the tax, willingly submitting, fully humbled” [Sura At-Tawbah: 29]
The word "hand" is a metaphor for ability, and jizyah is not taken from women and children,
and if the dhimmi becomes Muslim or becomes poor, the tax is dropped, and in the latter case
the state takes charge of it from the treasury, and the dhimmis are treated well, and they are
seen before the ruler, before the judge, when taking care of their affairs and when applying
transactions and penalties, as Muslims are seen without any discrimination, and they are
subject to the rulings of Islam as Muslims are subject to them. The state deals with them in the
same manner as Muslims, and there is no such description as minority and the majority in the
state, that is commonly used these days. Islam considers the group that is ruled under its
system as a human unit, regardless of its sect and gender, only affiliation is required in it,
meaning settlement and loyalty to the state, and there are no minorities in it. Rather, all
people, on a humane basis, are subjects of the Islamic state, as long as they hold the
citizenship.
A Latin historian talks about a Muslim campaign in 861 CE to conquer the city of Barcelona,
and states that the Jews helped Muslims enter the city, and he indicates that the Jews who
lived under the rule of the Nasarah in northern Spain preferred the rule of the Muslims over
the rule of the Nasarah, and some unbiased Nasarah have written about the virtues of the
Islamic State and how Nasarah have lived a life of justice and dignity that they have never
witnessed before.
The English historian, Sir Thomas Arnold, says in his book, The Preaching of Islam: "The
victorious Muslims have treated the Christians with great tolerance since the first century of
immigration, and this tolerance has continued in successive centuries. We can rightly judge
that the Christian tribes that have converted to Islam have embraced it out of free will and
choice, and that the Christian Arabs who live in our time among the Muslim groups are a
witness to this tolerance."
German Orientalist, Sigrid Hunke, says: "The Arabs did not force the conquered peoples to
embrace Islam. The Christians, Zoroastrians and Jews who met before Islam the worst and
most horrific examples of religious intolerance. They were all allowed without any hindrance
to prevent them from practicing their religion." And the Muslims left their houses of worship,
monasteries, priests, and rabbis without causing them any harm, and is this not the utmost
tolerance? Where did history narrate to us such actions? and when? Al-Kharbotli quotes from
the Orientalist Dozy in his book, Spanish Islam: A History of the Moslems in Spain, as saying:
"The tolerance and kind treatment of Muslims towards the people of the Dhimma led to their
acceptance of Islam and that they saw in it the ease and simplicity of what they were not
familiar with in their previous religions."
Gustave Le Bon wrote in his book, Arab Civilization: "Power was not a factor in the spread of
the Qur'an, for it left the conquered Arabs free in their religions…If it happened that some
Christian peoples assumed Islam and adopted Arabic as a language for them, that is because
the victorious Arabs were characterized by the forms of justice that people had never
experienced before, and because Islam was so easy that other religions did not know."
Will Durant says, "The dhimmis, Christians, Zoroastrians, Jews and Sabeans, enjoyed a
degree of tolerance during the Umayyad Caliphate that we have no analogous to in Christian
countries these days. They were free to practice their religion, and kept their churches and
temples," and the French Orientalist Aldo Mieli, who devoted himself to the history of
science, took over the agency of the International Society for the History of Science, and
founded the Archeion Magazine that records his activity among his scientific effects are:
(History of Science 1935), (Arabic Science and its Impact on Scientific Development in the
Islamic World 1941), (Botany among the Arabs 1941), and many others. This unbiased
scientist says: "The great tolerance shown by the Umayyad caliphs, and the kings of the sects
did not just extend their allegiance to the peoples they ruled, or to the Muslims who came
from Africa and the East only, but also spread its shadow over the Christian scholars who
came from the farthest countries to receive sciences in the countless prosperous cities, in that
magical country (Andalusia) that takes in groups of thinkers." And the writer and thinker
Adam Mitr invokes one of the great principles of Islam, which is the treatment of Muslims
with others in the state of Islam, and says: "The life of the dhimmi according to Abu Hanifa
and Ibn Hanbal was equivalent to the life of a Muslim and the blood money of a Muslim, and
it is a very important issue in principle ... and the Islamic government didn‘t interfere with the
religious rituals of the dhimmis."
Among the Muslim caliphs who took care of the dhimmis and recommended them well, the
second Khalifah Rashid (the rightly guided Caliph), Umar ibn al-Khattab (ra) who
recommended and advised the Khaleefahs after him to take good care of them. This was
mentioned by the Western scholar Arthur Stanley Triton, who was born in 1881, and was
appointed an assistant professor of Arabic in Edinburgh in 1911 CE, Glasgow in 1919, and a
professor in Aligarh in India in 1921, and the School of Oriental and African Studies in
London in 1931. Among his scientific and historical effects are: the Khulafaa (caliphs) and
their non-Muslim subjects 1930, the science of speech in Islam 1947, Islam faith and rituals of
1950 CE, and materials in Islamic education in 1957. This great scholar says about the will of
the Ameer Al-Mu‘minoon (Commander of the Faithful) Umar ibnn Al-Khattab with the
people of the dhimma: "When Umar ibn al-Khattab's was on his deathbed approaching death,
he commanded those after him, saying: I recommend the Khalifah (Caliph) after me to treat
the people of the dhimmah well, and to fulfill their pledge to them, and fight behind them, and
not overburden them."
Thus, we see how Islam has done justice to the dhimmis and guaranteed them justice and
dignity in the state of Islam, and we see how the people of the dhimmah have experienced this
and witnessed that throughout the years of Islamic rule.
These are fragments from some of the sayings of unbiased Western scholars and thinkers, and
the dhimmis who have lived under these laws for many centuries during which they were met
with good treatment and beautiful care, which made the Nasarah of the Levantine join the
Muslims in their wars against the Crusaders, and the people abroad heard about the good
treatment and guarantee of rights that the people of the Dhimma received, which prompted
the Jews of Spain to help the Muslims to conquer Andalusia. All of this happened at a time
when the rights of the conquered peoples were abused and not protected by other countries in
the world at the time.
In the narration of Umar ibn al-Khattab that he passed by an old man from the people of
the dhimmah asking at the gates of the people, then he said to him: 'What brought you to what
I see?' He said: 'the jizyah, the age and the need.' He said to him: 'We are not fair to you! We
used to take the jizyah from you in your youth, then left you in your old age' and he took him
to his house, gave him what he needed, then sent him to the treasurer of the treasury, and
ordered him to waive the tax from him, and to give him from the money of the treasury. The
story of Umar ibn al-Khattab where he removed the injustice that occurred against the
Copt by Ibn Amr ibn al-Aas, governor of Egypt, is famous when the Khaleefah (Caliph)
ordered the Coptic to revenge for himself from the son of the governor before his father!
Likewise, the story of our master Ali bin Abi Talib in referring to Judge Shureih regarding
his shield, which the dhimmi took is famous which demonstrates justice and equality before
the courts.
The evidence of the Islamic State's benevolence for the dhimmis is more than counted. Even
today, the people of Sicily in Italy and the people of many other regions have mentioned it,
even though neither Islam nor Muslims have had an impact on them for a long time.
The people of the Dhimma felt that fairness and justice to the extent that they preferred the
state of Islam and living among Muslims over living in the countries of the West or
cooperating with them. Hence, this led to the loss of one of the Crusaders' cards that they had
relied on in defeating the Muslims.
Yes, this is how their condition was in the Khilafah state, and it will be like this in the
upcoming second Khilafah state. The promise of our Lord and the glad tidings of our Prophet
‫ ﷺ‬let us roll up the sleeves to work hard and restore the authority of Muslims that will fill the
universe with light and justice after it is filled with injustice.

Written for the Central Media Office of Hizb ut Tahrir by