- published: 23 Jul 2014
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The Battle of Nahrawan was a battle between Ali ibn Abi Talib (the fourth Sunni Caliph and the 1st Shi'a Imam) and the Kharijites, near Nahrawan, twelve miles from Baghdad.
After the unsatisfactory conclusion to the Battle of Siffin, Imam Ali ibn Abi Talib returned with his army back to Kufa on the 13th of Safar 37 A.H. (~30 July 657 C.E.). During the march, a group of 12,000 men kept themselves at a distance from the main part of the army.
This group, the Kharijites, was furious at the way things had ended at Siffin. Although they had put down their weapons on the battlefield, demanding that Ali accept the arbitration proposed by Muawiyah, they now, however, held that Ali ibn Abi Talib had betrayed Islam by agreeing to the truce and should have referred judgment to the Quran alone or continued to fight. They demanded that he repent for this great sin.
When the army neared Kufa, the Kharijites camped at a village named Harura. They began saying that all Muslims were equal and no one could rule over another, denouncing both Ali ibn Abi Talib and Muawiyah while proclaiming that their belief was in "La Hukma Illa Lillah", meaning, "No Rulership except by Allah alone."