Shiavault - a Vault of Shia Islamic Books A Divine Perspective on Rights Right n. 50: The Right of Those Under the Protection of Islam حق أهل الذمة وَأمّا حَقُّ أَهْلِ الذِّمَّةِ فَالحُكْمُ فِيهِمْ أَنْ تَقبَلَ مِنْهُمْ مَا قَبِلَ اللهُ، وَتَفِي بمَا جَعَلَ اللهُ لَهُمْ مِنْ ذِمَّتِهِ وَعَهْدِهِ وَتكِلُهُمْ إلَيهِ فِيمَا طَلبُوا مِنْ أَنْفُسِهِمْ وَأُجْبرُِوا عَلَيْهِ وَتحْكُمَ فِيهِمْ بمَا حَكَمَ اللهُ بهِ عَلَى نفْسِكَ فِيمَا جَرَى بَيْنَكَ [وَبيْنَهمْ] مِنْ مُعَامَلَةٍ وَلْيَكُنْ بَينَكَ وَبيْنَ ظُلْمِهِمْ مِنْ رِعَايَةِ ذِمَّةِ اللَّهِ وَالْوَفَاءِ بعَهْدِهِ وَعَهْدِ رَسُولِ اللَّهِ – صَلَّى اللهُ عَلَيْهِ وَآلِهِ – حَائِلٌ فَإنَّهُ بَلَغَنَا أنَّهُ قَالَ «مَنْ ظَلَمَ مُعَاهِدًا كُنْتُ خَصْمَهُ» فَاتَّقِ اللَّهَ.
ولا حَوْلَ ولا قُوَّةَ إلا باللهِ. And the right of those under the protection of Islam is that you should accept from them what God has accepted from them, and fulfill what God has established for them under His protection and covenant, and entrust them to Him in what they are required to carry out, and are obliged to do.
And you should judge among them with the judgments of God that He commanded for you regarding the conditions of dealing with them, and do not wrong them as long as they honor God's covenant and fulfill their pledge. And the pledge of the Prophet, may God’s peace be upon him and his household, is a barrier [^1] since it is reported that he said: “I am the adversary of whoever oppresses one who has a treaty." Therefore, fear God. And there is no power but in God.
The Arabic word ‘Dhimma' means a pledge or a covenant. It has appeared in the following verses, for example: كَيْفَ وَإِن يَظْهَرُوا عَلَيْكُمْ لاَ يَرْقُبُواْ فِيكُمْ إِلاًّ وَلاَ ذِمَّةً يُرْضُونَكُم بِأَفْوَاهِهِمْ وَتَأْبَى قُلُوبُهُمْ وَأَكْثَرُهُمْ فَاسِقُونَ “How (can there be such a league), seeing that if they get an advantage over you, they respect not in you the ties either of kinship or of covenant?
With (fair words from) their mouth they entice you, but their hearts are averse from you; and most of them are rebellious and wicked.” [The Holy Qur’an, al-Tawbah 9:8] لاَ يَرْقُبُونَ فِي مُؤْمِنٍ إِلاًّ وَلاَ ذِمَّةً وَأُوْلَـئِكَ هُمُ الْمُعْتَدُونَ “In a believer they respect not the ties either of kinship or of covenant! It is they who have transgressed all bounds.
[The Holy Qur’an, al-Tawbah 9:10] “Those under the protection of Islam” refers to the Jews and the Christians who live under the rule of an Islamic government and have a covenant with the Muslims.