Home > Surah 33 - The Confederates
1. Divine Sanction of Execution:
Surah 33:26–27 provides explicit divine sanction for the mass execution of 600–900 men of the Banu Qurayza and the enslavement of their families, attributing the terror directly to God.
2. Expropriation as "Inheritance":
The text frames the seizure of Jewish land, homes, and property as a divine inheritance (mīrāth), providing a theological justification for total material liquidation and removal.
The Quran Verse:
Surah 33:26:
"And He brought down those who supported them among the People of the Scripture from their fortresses and cast terror into their hearts a party you killed, and you took captive a party. And He caused you to inherit their land and their homes and their properties..."
The Historical Context:
Following the Battle of the Trench, the Jewish tribe of Banu Qurayza was accused of treachery. Roughly 600 to 900 men were beheaded in the marketplace of Medina, and the women and children were sold into slavery.
While Islamic apologists argue this was a standard "war treaty" violation, critics point to the extreme nature of the punishment. The Quran "blesses" the seizure of their property and the execution of the men as a divine inheritance.
To the critic, this verse serves as a theological rubber stamp for ethnic cleansing and the forced removal of the last major Jewish presence in Medina.