Palestinian independence, is it really a sign of doomsday? So many are reluctant to defend Palestine? The conflict between Hamas and Israel since October 7 in the Gaza Strip has not shown any signs of ending. The Israeli military’s vicious attacks on the Gaza Strip have killed more than 9000 civilians. Most of the victims are children and women. The wounded have also reached approximately 32,000 people.
Many people from various countries condemned Israel’s heinous attacks on Palestinian civilians. Calls to boycott Israeli products are intensified as an effort to reject Israel’s actions against the Palestinian people, as well as calls to immediately stop the war. Support and aid continue to be sent to help refugees and war victims in Gaza.
On the other hand, since the Israeli-Palestinian conflict broke out again, a lot of information has spread on social media saying: if Palestine becomes independent, the end of the world is near. Is this true?
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Hadith Evidence Related to Palestinian Independence as a Sign of the Apocalypse
Information about an independent Palestine as a sign of the apocalypse comes from a hadith narrated by Abu Dawud, which reads:
“We were told by Ahmad bin Salih, who was told by Asad bin Musa, who was told by Muawiyah bin Salih, who told me, that Ibn Zughb al-Iyadi narrated to me, he said:
‘Abdullah bin Hawala al-Azdi came to me and said: ‘The Messenger of Allah (SAW) sent us out to plunder in the hope of gaining booty, but we returned without having gained anything. Then, the Messenger of Allah saw the weariness on our faces, stood in our midst and prayed:
‘O Allah, do not impose on them a burden which they cannot bear. And do not put a burden on themselves so that they become weak. And do not hand them over to others so that others will take advantage of them.’
Then, the Messenger of Allah (SAW) placed his hand on my head, or he may have said ‘hamah’ (neck/head), then he said: ‘O Ibn Hawala, when you see the caliphate has descended to Baitul Maqdis (Jerusalem), then that time will approach earthquakes, great disasters, and great troubles. On that day, the Hour will be closer for people than this distance between my hand and your head.’ Abu Dawud said: ‘Abdullah bin Hawala is from Homs.'” (HR. Abu Dawud).
Ibn Ruslan in Syarh Sunan Abi Dawud explained that Abdullah bin Hawala al-Azdi mentioned in the hadith above lived during two caliphates. That is the caliphate of Muawiyah bin Abi Sufyan in the holy city of Jerusalem (Baitul Maqdis) which began in 41 Hijri and the caliphate of Abdul Malik bin Marwan in Damascus (Sham) which began in 80 Hijri. During his life in these two caliphates, Abdullah bin Hawala witnessed firsthand what has been mentioned in the hadith, namely many earthquakes that destroyed tall buildings.
Level of Hadith validity
As a Muslim, you should not immediately accept the information circulating before finding out the truth, so as not to participate in spreading information that still raises doubts, one of which is the hadith above.
Quoting from the official Muhammadiyah website, this hadith is categorized as a weak hadith. Because some of the narrators are still doubtful, namely Muawiyah bin Salih because he was involved in several suspicious hadith narrations. Furthermore, Ibn Zughb al-Iyadi or Abdullah bin Zughb is a narrator who is less trusted because he is less known.
In addition, there are variations in the naming and attribution of narrators in this hadith, which raises doubts regarding its consistency and authenticity.
From the side of the narrator, it can already show the weakness of this hadith, more than that the content in this hadith is also considered not in accordance with the sunnahs of the Prophet Muhammad. Because it contains major events in the future, it is considered incompatible with other hadith characteristics.
Read also: Dompet Dhuafa Consistently Supports Palestinian Independence!
Knowledge about the Day of Judgment
Knowledge of the Day of Judgment is actually not owned by humans, even the Prophet Muhammad. This statement is proven in QS. Al-A’raf verse 187, namely:
يَسْـَٔلُوْنَكَ عَنِ السَّاعَةِ اَيَّانَ مُرْسٰىهَاۗ قُلْ اِنَّمَا عِلْمُهَا عِنْدَ رَبِّيْۚ لَا يُجَلِّيْهَا لِوَقْتِهَآ اِلَّا هُوَۘ ثَقُلَتْ فِى السَّمٰوٰتِ وَالْاَرْضِۗ لَا تَأْتِيْكُمْ اِلَّا بَغْتَةً ۗيَسْـَٔلُوْنَكَ كَاَنَّكَ حَفِيٌّ عَنْهَاۗ قُلْ اِنَّمَا عِلْمُهَا عِنْدَ اللّٰهِ وَلٰكِنَّ اَكْثَ النَّاسِ لَا يَعْلَمُوْنَ.
“They ask you (Prophet Muhammad) about the Hour, ‘When will it occur?’ Say, “Verily, the knowledge of it is only with my Lord. There is no one who can tell the time of its occurrence except Him, and the Hour is very severe for the creatures in the heavens and the earth, and it will not come upon you except suddenly.” They ask you as if you know. Say (Prophet Muhammad), “Verily, the knowledge of it is only with Allah, but most people do not know.”” [QS. Al-A’raf:187]
In this verse it is very clear that Allah is the only one who knows about the Day of Judgment. Not a single creature knows about the Day of Judgment, not even the apostles and prophets have knowledge of it. This verse confirms that the hadith above is weak or not saheeh.
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Palestinian Independence and Signs of Doomsday
The hadith that is used as an argument for people to assume that if ‘Palestine is independent then the doomsday is getting closer’, turns out to be contrary to surah Al-A’raf verse 187. Because only Allah knows about the Day of Judgment. Therefore, Palestinian independence has nothing to do with the Day of Judgment.
A clear picture of doomsday, when and what it will be like will only happen with the permission of Allah Swt. We as His creatures can only believe that doomsday will definitely happen and after that there will be a day of reckoning. So we need to prepare as much good provision as possible so that one day we will be given the best place in the side of Allah SWT.
Thus, we as Muslims must continue to support our brothers and sisters in Palestine who are struggling to defend their rights. Let us continue to pray that Allah SWT will protect them and send His help soon. For those who are willing and able, we should also provide material support by donating to help our brothers and sisters in the Gaza Strip, who are currently in need of water, food, medicine, and others. You can contribute through Dompet Dhuafa by clicking the following link.
