Detailed Account

Alarmed by the Muslims' successful migration to Madinah and the prospective power base forming there, Quraysh leaders convened an emergency council at Dar al-Nadwah (their assembly house) to address what they perceived as an existential threat. Present were chiefs from all Makkan clans including Abu Jahl, Abu Sufyan, Safwan ibn Umayyah, Ikrimah ibn Abi Jahl, and others. They considered three options proposed by Iblis (who attended in the guise of an elderly Najdi sheikh): imprisonment, exile, or assassination. They settled on assassination, with Abu Jahl proposing a scheme designed to prevent blood revenge—selecting one young man from each tribe to strike simultaneously so blood compensation would be divided among many tribes, making it impossible for Banu Hashim to seek revenge against all Quraysh. This plan was unanimously approved. Meanwhile, Angel Jibreel brought divine revelation informing the Prophet ﷺ of this plot and instructing him to leave Makkah immediately. The Prophet ﷺ visited Abu Bakr to finalize migration plans, then returned home where he asked Ali to sleep in his bed that night, wearing his distinctive green cloak, and to later return valuable items people had entrusted to him. That night, the young assassins surrounded his house, waiting until morning to strike while he slept. The Prophet ﷺ walked past them unnoticed, reciting Surah Ya-Sin (36:9): 'And We have put a barrier before them, and a barrier behind them, and We have covered them up, so they cannot see.' When the assassins finally entered at dawn and found Ali in the bed, their plot was exposed and failed. This divine protection fulfilled Allah's promise: 'Allah will protect you from the people' (5:67).