Iyad ibn Ghanm

ʿIyāḍ ibn Ghanm ibn Zuhayr al-Fihrī ( ar, عياض بن غنم بن زهير الفهري) (died 641), was an Arab general who played a leading role in the Muslim conquests of al-Jazira (Upper Mesopotamia) and northern Syria. He was among the handful of Qurayshi tribesmen to embrace Islam before the mass conversion of the tribe in 630, and was a companion of the Islamic prophet Muhammad. In 634, under Caliph Abu Bakr, he governed the north Arabian oasis town of Dumat al-Jandal. Later, in 637, he became governor of al-Jazira (Upper Mesopotamia), but was dismissed by Caliph Umar (r. 634–644) for alleged improprieties. Afterward, he became a close military aide of his cousin and nephew, Abu Ubayda ibn al-Jarrah, under whose direction Iyad subjected much of Byzantine-held northern Syria, including Aleppo, Manbij and Cyrrhus.

When Abu Ubayda died in 639, Iyad succeeded him as governor of Hims, Qinnasrin and al-Jazira. In the latter territory, he launched a campaign to assert Muslim rule, first capturing Raqqa after conquering the countryside. This was followed by the conquests of Edessa, Harran and Samosata and Dara, Iyad received the surrenders of a string of other Mesopotamian towns with relatively little blood spilled. Overall, Iyad's conquest of Upper Mesopotamia left much of the captured towns intact and their inhabitants unharmed to maintain their tax payments to the nascent caliphate. According to historian Leif Inge Ree Petersen, Iyad "has received little attention" but was "clearly of great ability".

Early life

Iyad was the son of a certain 'Abd Ghanm ibn Zuhayr al-Fihri. He belonged to the al-Harith ibn Fihr ibn Malik branch of the Quraysh tribe. The latter were a mercantile Arab tribe based in Mecca in the western Arabian Peninsula. Iyad was among the few members of the Quraysh to have embraced Islam prior to the truce at Hudaybiyya between the Islamic prophet Muhammad and the largely pagan Quraysh in 628, and was present alongside Muhammad during the peace negotiations. Upon accepting Islam, Iyad had his name changed from "ibn ʿAbd Ghanm" to "ibn Ghanm"; "''ʿAbd Ghanm''", the name of his father, translates in Arabic as "servant of Ghanm", an idol worshiped by the pagan Arabs. The latter was an association that Iyad detested, according to 9th-century historian al-Baladhuri. The rest of the Quraysh converted to Islam in 630.

Campaigns in Syria

Iyad may have been the Muslim commander who defeated an Arab tribal revolt in the oasis town of Dumat al-Jandal during the Ridda wars of 632–633. The tribes involved in the revolt were the Banu Kalb, Banu Salīh, Tanukh and Ghassan. Other medieval reports attribute this victory to 'Amr ibn al-'As. In any case, according to 9th-century historian al-Tabari, Iyad was governor of Dumat al-Jandal in 634, during the reign of Caliph Abu Bakr. In 637, Iyad was made governor of al-Jazira (Upper Mesopotamia) by Caliph Umar (r. 634–644), but was dismissed by the latter due to allegations that he had used his office to accept gifts or bribes. Afterward, he became a close aide and lieutenant commander of his paternal cousin and maternal nephew, Abu Ubayda ibn al-Jarrah, who had military authority over Syria.

In 638, Iyad was dispatched by Abu Ubayda to subdue Aleppo (Beroea) in northern Syria, then part of the Byzantine Empire. Abu Ubayda himself arrived later, but as soon as he set up camp around the city, the townspeople signaled their desire to negotiate terms. Iyad, who was sanctioned by Abu Ubayda to negotiate on his behalf, agreed to the proposed terms guaranteeing the safety of Aleppo's inhabitants and properties, but with the condition that a site be made available for the construction of a mosque. Abu Ubayda later sent Iyad at the head of an army to capture Cyrrhus, whose inhabitants sent out a monk to meet Iyad; following this meeting, Iyad had the monk meet Abu Ubayda and arrange the surrender of Cyrrhus. Iyad continued on northward and eastward, overseeing the capitulation of Manbij (Hierapolis), Ra'ban and Duluk.

Conquest of Upper Mesopotamia

As response of the siege toward Emesa by Byzantine and Christian Arabs coalition in around 638, Iyad was tasked by caliph Umar through his superior, Abu Ubaydah to invade Al-Jazira.m

When Abu Ubayda died in 639, Caliph Umar appointed Iyad in his place as the ''ʿamal'' (governor) of Hims, Qinnasrin (Chalcis) and al-Jazira with directions to conquer the latter territory from its Byzantine commanders because they had refused to pay the tributes promised to the Muslims in 638. By the time Iyad was given his assignment, all of Syria had been conquered by the Muslims, leaving the Byzantine garrisons in al-Jazira isolated from the empire. In August 639, Iyad led a 5,000-strong army toward Raqqa (Kallinikos) in al-Jazira and raided the city's environs. He encountered resistance from its defenders, prompting him to withdraw and send smaller units to make raids around Raqqa, seizing captives and harvests. After five or six days of these raids, Raqqa's patrician negotiated the surrender of the city to Iyad. According to historian Michael Meinecke, Iyad captured the city in 639 or 640.

After Raqqa, Iyad proceeded toward Harran, where his progress was stalled. He diverted part of his army to Edessa, which ultimately capitulated after negotiations. Iyad then received Harran's surrender and dispatched Safwan ibn Mu'attal al-Sulami and his own kinsman Habib ibn Maslama al-Fihri to seize Samosata

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