What arguments are there to counter claims that Prophet Muhammad was a person who enslaved others – that he captured slaves in raids, that he bought and sold slaves, and even took their women, and that he also enslaved men and women, and killed prisoners of war? I have seen references that indicate that these claims are true.

All perfect praise be to Allaah, The Lord of the Worlds. I testify that there is none worthy of worship except Allaah, and that Muhammad, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, is His slave and Messenger.

The Prophet, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, is innocent from claims that he used to enslave free men; he only enslaved those who had chosen to be slaves to other than Allaah The Almighty and did not want to embrace Islam or submit themselves to Allaah The Almighty and obey His Commandments. The Prophet, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, never enslaved the one who submitted himself to Allaah’s will, or submitted himself to Allaah’s Commandments by paying the Jizyah (a tax imposed on the People of the Book when under Muslim rule). This is because if a person became a Muslim, he freed himself from worshipping the creation and became a worshipper of the Lord of the creation.

However, if he objects and refuses to submit himself to Allaah The Almighty, and chooses to be a non-Muslim, but did not become an obstacle in the way of the call to Allaah The Almighty, and accepted to pay the due tax, then he is allowed to do so. Nonetheless, if he objects to the way of calling to Allaah The Almighty and obstructs its path by driving people away from it so that they remain as slaves to other than Allaah The Almighty, then such a person deserves slavery, and this is the only permissible way of slavery in Islam. Indeed Islam has set many ways for getting rid of slavery and encouraged emancipation. For more benefit, please refer to Fatwa 82182.

It is known that slavery is a very ancient practice. There were many ways of enslaving people, like being a master over a person (having an upper hand on him), or a person being indebted, or having stolen, or being in need, or being a burglar, and so forth. A person who had predominance on someone else could enslave him, and if an indebted person had no money to repay his debt, he would give away one of his children as a slave; if he had no children, he would give himself. Also, a thief used to be enslaved as in the story of Yoosuf (Joseph) with his brothers. Allaah The Almighty Says (what means): {They [the accusers] said: ''Then what would be then the penalty of him if you are proved to be liars?" [The brothers] said: "His penalty should be that he, in whose bag it is found, should be held for the punishment of the crime. Thus do we recompense the wrongdoers."} [Quran, 12:74-75] And when a person was in need, he would sell one of his children in order to spend on himself and his family. The robbers and outlaws enslaved any person they took control of, and so on.

Before Islam, slaves were very badly treated, and Islam strenuously advocated freedom and emancipation of slaves, so it closed all the doors that led to slavery except the one we discussed at the beginning of this Fatwa. So how can Islam and the Prophet of Islam, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, be accused of enslaving people?

Allaah Knows best.