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Historical figurePhase 4a · Muhajirun, Ansar, Tabi‘eenMajor figure

Ubaydullah ibn Ziyad

عبيد الله بن زياد

d. 67 AH (Battle of Khazir) date disputed

Umayyad governor of Basra and, under Yazid, of Kufa. He had Muslim ibn Aqil executed, sent the army that killed al-Husayn at Karbala, and was killed in 67 AH by forces of al-Mukhtar.

Biography

Son of Ziyad ibn Abihi, he governed Basra under Mu'awiyah and was given Kufa by Yazid to suppress support for al-Husayn. He arrested and executed al-Husayn's envoy Muslim ibn Aqil and dispatched an army under Umar ibn Sa'd to Karbala (historical sources such as Tarikh al-Tabari).

Sahih Bukhari records that al-Husayn's head was brought before him and he poked at it with a stick, while Anas ibn Malik said al-Husayn most resembled the Prophet ﷺ. Sahih Muslim records the companion A'idh ibn Amr warning him with the hadith that the worst shepherd is the harsh one, and Ibn Ziyad replying with contempt for the companions. He was killed at the Battle of Khazir in 67 AH by al-Mukhtar's army (historical).

Sources & explanation

۞ Qur'an

No specific verses cited for this node.

📜 Hadith verified on sunnah.com

  • Sahih al-Bukhari 3749 Sahih

    The head of al-Husayn was brought to 'Ubaydullah ibn Ziyad, who poked it with a stick; Anas ibn Malik said Husayn most resembled the Prophet ﷺ.

  • Sahih Muslim 142a Sahih

    Ma'qil ibn Yasar, on his deathbed, told 'Ubaydullah ibn Ziyad the hadith that a ruler who does not look after his subjects sincerely will not smell Paradise.

  • Sahih Muslim 1830 Sahih

    'A'idh ibn 'Amr told 'Ubaydullah ibn Ziyad: the worst of shepherds are the harsh ones.

💬 Explanation Mirza view verified

Engineer Muhammad Ali Mirza's perspective

Methodological note (not a direct quote): Engineer Muhammad Ali Mirza's widely known approach is to build narratives primarily on the Quran and Sahih Hadith, to set aside weak or fabricated narrations, and to avoid sectarian framing. Applied to this node: In verified videos Mirza calls Ibn Ziyad the most wicked of Yazid's governors, cites the Bukhari report of al-Husayn's head being brought before him, and the Sahih Muslim report of A'idh ibn Amr and a Sunan Abi Dawud report of Abu Barzah about him.

Verified from the auto-transcripts of 6zhjdo3CoFk (101-Mas'alah, 2 Nov 2014) and IdbHksM5Ixs (14 July 2024). Hadith numbers Mirza quotes are not reproduced here.

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Further references

  • Sahih Bukhari (Anas: al-Husayn's head before Ibn Ziyad)
  • Sahih Muslim (A'idh ibn Amr and Ubaydullah ibn Ziyad)
  • Sunan Abi Dawud (Abu Barzah and Ubaydullah ibn Ziyad)
  • Tarikh al-Tabari (historical)

Connections

Linked with