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Concept
Pact of Umar
Summary
The Pact of Umar (also known as the Covenant of Umar, Treaty of Umar or Laws of Umar; شروط عمر or عهد عمر or عقد عمر), is a treaty between the Muslims and the non-Muslim inhabitants of either Levant (Syria and Lebanon), Mesopotamia (Iraq) or Jerusalem that later gained a canonical status in Islamic jurisprudence. It specifies rights and restrictions for dhimmis, or "people of the book," a type of protected class of non-Muslim peoples recognized by Islam which includes Jews, Christians, Zoroastrians, and several other recognized faiths living under Islamic rule.
There are several versions of the pact, differing both in structure and stipulations. While the pact is traditionally attributed to the second Rashidun Caliph Umar ibn Khattab, other jurists and orientalists have questioned this attribution with the treaty being instead attributed to 9th century Mujtahids (Islamic scholars) or the Umayyad Caliph Umar II. This treaty should not be confused with Umar's Assurance of safety to the people of Aelia (known as al-ʿUhda al-ʿUmariyya, العهدة العمرية).
In general, the pact contains a list of rights and restrictions on non-Muslims (dhimmis). By abiding by them, non-Muslims are granted the security of their persons, their families, and their possessions. Other rights and stipulations may also apply. According to Ibn Taymiyya, one of the jurists who accepted the authenticity of the pact, the dhimmis have the right "to free themselves from the Covenant of 'Umar and claim equal status with the Muslims if they enlisted in the army of the state and fought alongside the Muslims in battle."
The origins of the Pact of 'Umar are difficult, if not entirely impossible, to identify. Western scholars' opinions vary concerning the Pact's authenticity. According to Anver M. Emon, "There is intense discussion in the secondary literature" about the Pact's authenticity, with scholars disagreeing whether it originated during the reign of Umar b.
Official source
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